A two-part story. In Part 1, Martha tells Truman a vivid, autobiographical account of her puppy days in the animal shelter, and of her excitement at finding a family. As it turns out, Helen wasn't the first person who adopted Martha. Her very first owners were a vain, incompetent criminal with delusions of grandeur named Carlotta Bumblecrumb, and her silent simpleton henchman, Mr. Stubble. Despite the best efforts of Kazuo, who runs the shelter and senses something amiss with Bumblecrumb, the crook disguises herself and manages to adopt Martha and drive away with her. In Part 2, Martha's new owners turn out to have unsavory plans for the puppy, keeping her tied up in a dank old warehouse, and putting her to work as a sort of canine Oliver Twist. They force her to burglarize a rare Babe Ruth autographed baseball from a sports memorabilia store, aid in their attempt to kidnap the famous showbiz pussycat, Jingles, and finally to steal the bones of an ancient dinosaur at the local Museum of Natural History. Can Martha turn the tables on the bumbling crooks and still find a family?