Fifteen-year-old Angus McCormick (Jesse Bradford) lives near a small town in British Columbia, Canada with his parents and eight-year-old brother Silas. Nowadays, he either runs his paper route to earn his savings, learns wilderness survival skills from his father, or spends time with his friends David and Sara (Margot Finley). One afternoon, while gathering up firewood near the house, Angus finds a stray Labrador Retriever and begs his parents to let him care of him. Angus' parents, John and Katherine McCormick agree that Angus can keep the stray on the condition that he takes full responsibility in taking care of the dog, whom Angus later names him Yellow.