Wife assists young animals (6)
I believe the answer is:
whelps
'young animals' is the definition.
'whelps' can be an answer for 'animals' (whelp is a kind of animal). I am not certain of the 'young' bit.
'wife assists' is the wordplay.
'wife' becomes 'w' (abbreviation).
'assists' becomes 'helps' ('help' can be a synonym of 'assist').
'w'+'helps'='WHELPS'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for whelps that I've seen before include "puppies" , "Young dogs or pups" , "Young of various canines" , "Young wolves or dogs" , "Gives birth" .)