The Wild Horses of the Chilcotin

Award-winning author and wildlife biologist Wayne McCrory explores the cultural significance, ecological role, and threatened future of the Chilcotin’s wild horses in this richly researched account of one of British Columbia’s most contested animals.

The Chilcotin’s wild horses are romantic and beautiful, but they are also controversial: they are seen by government policy as intruders competing for range land with native species and domestic cattle and, as a result, they have been subject to culls and are not officially protected.

In this landmark book, wildlife biologist Wayne McCrory draws upon two decades of research to make a case for considering these wonderful creatures, called qiyus in traditional Tŝilhqot’in culture, a resilient part of the area’s balanced prey-predator ecosystem. McCrory also chronicles the Chilcotin wild horses’ genetic history and significance to the Tŝilhqot’in, juxtaposing their efforts to protect qiyus against movements to cull them.