New Zealand When the owner is sleeping in the east coast, the dogs suddenly bark alarms only a few minutes before the earthquake happens.

A few minutes before the 7.1 earthquake occurred at 2h27 on March 5, about 105 km east, Graeme and Pauline Summersby were waken.

"It's like crazy and barking as if she saw a bag with a bag or porcupine, but when she felt a vibration, we understood what it was warning," Graeme said.

"We live in a wooden house, only wrap the mesh against flies, the collapsed window, so the noise is very large. Not only the noise of the earthquake even the noise of the house is moving."

Graeme sitting on sun heating on the porch with his pet dog

Graeme felt lucky about the big earthquake but indoors only broke two porcelain dishes.

Dave, the 10-year-old hybrid dog, also felt the earthquake in front of the master.

"A minute later, the earthquake happened," Campbell said.

He lived in Hicks Bay, about 12 km northwest of Te Araroa.

Thousands of people on the east coast of North Island, New Zealand evacuated to a higher land after the third earthquake in less than 8 hours.

According to NEMA, the location of the remote earthquake, but does not minimize potential impacts.

This South Pacific country has just celebrated the 10th anniversary of the 6.3-year earthquake that killed 185 people and thousands of injuries in Christchurch on February 22, 2011.