Animal News

Australian beaches reopen as sharks move on

Sydney - Australian beaches that had closed due to sightings of large sharks for a record nine days, reopened on Monday, officials said, but rough surf kept most swimmers away.

Toxic biscuits kill 14 monkeys in India

Kolkata - Fourteen monkeys have died after snatching and then eating biscuits laced with rat poison in eastern India, officials said Monday.

Shark sighting closes Australia's Bondi Beach

Sydney - Hundreds of swimmers were ordered out of the water and Sydney's Bondi Beach was briefly closed Friday after a shark was spotted, with lifeguards patrolling the sea until the animal swam away.

Argentine Orangutan unfazed by right to freedom ruling

Buenos Aires - Sandra the orangutan took her newfound fame in stride after an Argentine court upheld her right to be freed from a zoo, munching a melon and putting the rind on her head for the cameras.

Norway scraps controversial seal hunting subsidy

Oslo - Norway's much-criticised commercial seal hunt could grind to a halt following parliament's decision to scrap a hefty subsidy for the controversial practice.A majority of lawmakers voted late Thursday to cull a 12-million-kroner (1.3-million-euro, $1.

Six sperm whales die in rare mass beaching in Australia

Sydney - A pod of six sperm whales washed up dead Monday in a rare mass stranding on the South Australia coast, with animal welfare officials struggling over the logistics of handling the huge carcasses.

Understanding how dogs interpret human speech

Dogs tend to turn to the left when they hear emotional speech-like sounds, and right when they hear verbal commands from a robot, according to some fascinating new research into how dogs interpret sounds.

Video of train 'mowing down bear' shocks Russians

Moscow - Russians reacted with shock Friday and prosecutors launched an inquiry after a YouTube video went viral showing a train apparently mowing down a bear on the tracks as the driver shouts "crush him!

Tiger or tabby? France scales down cat hunt

Mont - French officials on Friday scaled down a frantic hunt for a mysterious big cat prowling on the outskirts of Paris after scotching earlier fears it was a tiger.

Police hunt for tiger on the loose near Paris

Mont - Police and firefighters were desperately hunting for a tiger on the loose near Paris Thursday after a local resident spotted the fearsome animal in a car park and sounded the alert, authorities said.

Chinese officials 'on illegal African ivory buying sprees'

Bejing - Chinese diplomatic and military staff went on buying sprees for illegal ivory while on official visits to East Africa, sending prices soaring, an environmental activist group said Thursday.

Thousands march worldwide for rhino, elephant protection

Johannesburg - Thousands marched in Africa and around the world to pressure governments to do more to stop the poaching industry that many fear is driving rhinos and elephants to the brink of extinction.

White tiger kills youth at New Delhi zoo

New Delhi - A white tiger on Tuesday attacked and killed a youth who appeared to have jumped or fallen into its enclosure at a zoo in the Indian capital, witnesses said.

More than £1m floods in for British dogs' home after blaze

Manchester - A dogs' home in northern England said it was "overwhelmed" after an online appeal launched following a horrific blaze, which claimed the lives of 53 animals, raised £1 million in 24 hours.

Man killed by shark at popular Australian beach

Sydney - A man was killed by a shark in front of his wife Tuesday at a popular Australian beach after being bitten on the leg while swimming, officials said.

Dolphin hunting season kicks off in Japan

Tokyo - The controversial six-month dolphin hunting season began on Monday in the infamous town of Taiji, but bad weather would delay any killing, a local official told AFP.

Birth of rare 'geep' surprises petting zoo owner

Scottsdale - If you have never heard of a "geep", don't worry, neither did an Arizona woman, that is not until one of her ewes gave birth to one.

Mandela's 'starving' cows rescued by local officials

Johannesburg - The provincial government has stepped in to save dozens of starving cattle at the rural South African home of Nelson Mandela, the late anti-apartheid hero, a Sunday newspaper reported.

Bali to continue anti-rabies dog cull as gory video emerges

Denpasar - Among the white sandy beaches, luxury villas and temples, authorities on the Indonesian island of Bali are carrying out mass culls of dogs in an anti-rabies campaign, an official confirmed Sunday.

Australian rescuers free stranded baby whale

Gold Coast - Australian rescuers freed a beached baby whale Thursday almost two days after it became stranded on a popular beach, as a large crowd of onlookers cheered.

Three U.S. troops, military dog killed in Afghan blast

Kabul - A Taliban attack killed three American soldiers and a military dog in southern Afghanistan on Friday, officials said, in the latest sign of the insurgents' capability as the coalition winds down operations.

Spanish zoo vet shoots keeper in gorilla escape drill

Madrid - A Spanish zoo vet shot a keeper with a tranquillizer dart when a gorilla escape drill went awry, knocking out the unfortunate victim who spent the next three days in hospital.

Boy opens up a no-kill animal shelter in his garage

Ken, a nine-year-old from the southern Philippines, wanted to open an animal shelter to help cats and dogs who were on the streets. Ken eventually did just that.

Lion cub 'runs wild' after smuggled on Russian train

Moscow - A Russian woman who smuggled a 50-kilogram (110-pound) lion cub onto a sleeper train claiming it was a domestic cat was being questioned Thursday, police said.

Man convicted over orangutan, tiger skulls in Australia

Sydney - A man was Friday convicted on 24 charges of possessing illegal wildlife products, including orangutan and tiger skulls, following the biggest seizure of such items in Australian history.

Taiwanese tourists hurt in Japan deer rampage

Tokyo - Visitors to one of usually-safe Japan's most celebrated spots are being warned to be on the lookout, after two Taiwanese tourists were injured in a rampage by a wild deer.

Philippine fishermen demand bounty for crocodile

Davao - Fishermen in the southern Philippines are demanding a reward for a crocodile they said they caught accidentally, but officials insisted Sunday they would not pay for the reptile.

Paul Iacono stars in Chiller horror film, ‘Animal’

MTV star Paul Iacono is set to appear in NBCUniversal's upcoming horror film, from director Brett Simmons, to be aired on its Chiller channel.

P&G sells most pet-care assets to Mars for $2.9 bn

New York - Procter & Gamble will sell most of its pet care business to Mars for $2.9 billion as the US consumer-products giant streamlines its businesses, the companies announced Wednesday.