A horse owning family has been ordered to buy back a pony and pay costs to the woman to whom they sold it.

Michelle Kennedy bought Daz the pony from Nicholas and Stephanie McDonald who have been ordered by Deemster Roberts to pay more than £3,000.

The McDonalds bought Daz as a ’first ridden pony’ for their daughter. A first ridden pony is one which is suitable for a child once they are able to ride without a lead rein.

Mrs Kennedy says she was ’clear’ that she wanted to buy a first ridden pony while the McDonalds deny they advertised Daz as such.

The McDonalds said they bought Daz for their own daughter who rode him for nine months and they only decided to sell him because she had outgrown the pony.

They also insist that Daz was well behaved when they had him and had won competitions when ridden by their daughter.

However, after buying Daz, Mrs Kennedy’s daughter had issues riding him.

On November 3, the first time she rode him off a lead rein, Daz was said to ’put his head between his legs and did a series of bucks’.

Two days later, the pony unseated their daughter and the Kennedys decided Daz was not suitable for her.

Mrs Kennedy included in her evidence to the court a series of Facebook posts including one where Mrs McDonald referred to him as ’a little git’ and another where Daz was advertised as ’sold as seen’.

She sought costs from the court both for the cost of the pony (£2,500) as well as £750 livery costs, £37 for feed, £140 for shavings and £20 for a farrier.

In her judgement, Deemster Sharon Roberts found that ’Mr and Mrs McDonald had issues with Daz which were not disclosed by them to Mr and Mrs Kennedy’.

She added: ’I accept that Mrs McDonald disclosed the fall her daughter had which led to the concussion but she said it was rider error.

’There is no supporting evidence of this and I note that at times Mrs McDonald is keen to stress she is new to the "pony world" with Daz being their first pony.

’This declared lack of knowledge and experience is at odds with her assertion that her daughter’s fall was rider error rather than the behaviour of Daz.’

Deemster Roberts said that the evidence she had heard led her to the conclusion that ’Daz was not a pony who would do as he was told and nothing more’.

And added: ’Having made the findings as aforesaid my decision is that Mrs Kennedy has proved her case that the misrepresentations were made, they were untrue and had induced her to enter into the contract to purchase Daz.’

She ordered the McDonalds to pay all of Mrs Kennedy’s claim, totalling £3,447 and to pay costs of £103.50.