Twelve-year-old Belle (Cardone) begins acting out after her mother's death in a car accident. She thinks her father Cody (London), who must euthanize unwanted pets as part of his animal control job, is in some way responsible. Cody decides to send Belle to her maternal grandfather Hock's (Coyote) farm but Hock is having trouble dealing with his own grief and it has turned him indifferent to the plight of the animals on the property. Of course as Belle helps care for the various critters, she and her family begin to reach out to one another. Boyle's last film role.