Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew have a different sort of case to solve in “Pony Problems” by Carolyn Keene. There is a new petting zoo in town and among the chickens and goats there is a sweet Shetland pony named Buttons. Mr. Johnson and his family moved to River Heights when they bought the farm. Unfortunately, business hasn’t been doing well and his pony keeps finding ways to escape. Neighbors around River Heights keep finding Buttons in their front yard munching on flowers and grass.

No one in River Heights is happy about Buttons getting out and ruining their yards and gardens. Mr. Johnson doesn’t know what to do to keep the pony locked up at night. He has tried everything possible and just doesn’t see how he is getting out. The girls ask Mr. Johnson if they can take the case and he gladly accepts the offer and invites Nancy, George and Bess over to the petting zoo to start hunting for clues. When they get there they just fall in love with the animals and wonder why Mr. Johnson isn’t getting much business. The place is great and all the animals are very friendly. But if they are going to figure out how Buttons is getting out, they have to get down to business.

Working on the farm are two other girls their age. One is a girl from their school named Stacy. Stacy loves ponies and has always wanted one of her own. But because she can’t due to not having enough room for one, she helps take care of Buttons on the farm. Stacy knows just about all there is to know about Shetland Ponies. The other girl on the farm The Clue Crew has never met before. They try to introduce themselves to her but she won’t speak to them or even acknowledge their presence.

Stacy tells The Clue Crew that her name is Amanda. She’s Mr. Johnson’s daughter and she hates the farm and hates that her dad made her whole family move to River Heights. She misses her friends and wishes that Buttons would just disappear. If Buttons went away, then her dad would have no reason to keep the farm and they could all move back home. But even though she feels that way, would she actually do something to put a pony in danger like letting it lose in town at night? That’s what the crew intends to find out.