When third-grader Billy Burger gets into a fight with the Randy, the school bully, he is suspended, and his parents, while sympathetic, assign him to volunteer for the Shake-a-paw Animal Shelter, which is not so bad, except for the dog poop--and proves to have unexpected benefits when the Randy corners him in an alley.

Gavin wants to make a good impression at Carver Elementary, where no one knows he excels at soccer and skateboarding, but an annoying big sister, a bully, and his great aunt's Pomeranian are not helping.