Kaimanawa Princess

Summary: Story based on 13-year-old Rochelle Purcell and her pony Kaimanawa Princess and their campaign to save the wild horses of the Kaimanawas in August 2006, when they appeared on television and then participated in a protest on the Desert Rd
New Zealand author

Through a fog of steam rising from the group of terrified wild horses huddled together, Becky saw her standing alone, a beautiful black Kaimanawa pony with four white socks and a distinctive white blaze, running the length of her nose.

When Becky chose her pony at the stockyards she had no idea how hard it was going to be. Hard to train a wild horse, hard to compete with the expensive mounts at the pony club, and hard to stand by silently when the wild herds where threatened.

At stake would be the survival of New Zealand's famous wild horses - the Kaimanawa - who had lived for more than a century on the Central Plateau of the North Island. As Becky forged a bond of love and trust with the little pony she named Kaimanawa Princess, powerful interests began to unite in an effort to eliminate the wild herds. And when the time came, the young girl and her pony took their place in the struggle to save the wild horses.