Animal gives party direction (3)
I believe the answer is:
doe
'animal' is the definition.
(doe is a kind of animal)
'party direction' is the wordplay.
'party' becomes 'do' (do is a kind of party).
'direction' becomes 'e' (E is an example).
'do'+'e'='DOE'
'gives' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for doe that I've seen before include "Rabbit, perhaps" , "Buck's mate" , "Female kangaroo" , "Female creature" , "Mummy rabbit" .)