A police spokesperson confirmed there were seven dogs on the ute at the time of the crash - three of them died, three were seriously injured, and one ran away.
The cause of the crash is being investigated.
It was one of three crashes around Hawke's Bay yesterday.
Two people were injured, one moderately and the other with minor injuries, when a trailer came off a northbound car on State Highway 2 over the Tutaekuri River Bridge, crashing into another southbound car about 11.20am.
A person was also moderately injured in a crash involving a car and a truck at the Te Ara Kahikatea Dr roundabout, near Whakatu, about 1.30pm.