Napoleon

At a birthday party in Sydney, Muffin the puppy dreams of life with wild dogs. Curious, he hops into a balloon basket and pulls the tether loose, sending the basket floating away. The city and party fade as he rises into the sky.

The balloon basket drifts toward the sea where a galah named Birdo swoops in. Birdo offers to help but pops the balloons to bring Napoleon down safely, landing him on a beach. Napoleon resolves to seek the wild and heads into the nearby forest.

In the forest, a tawny frogmouth warns him of dangers, while a psychotic cat spots Napoleon and chases him, thinking he is a mouse. He escapes when the frogmouth pushes the cat into a pond, but the cat swears revenge. Napoleon decides to press on toward the wild.

The next morning Napoleon meets Birdo again and asks to learn how to live in the wild. He reveals his real name Muffin and is teased by a deep-voiced green tree frog and the rainbow lorikeets. He becomes stranded on a floating log, and Birdo finally agrees to teach him how to swim back to shore.

Napoleon tries hunting by chasing rabbits but ends up accepting moss as his meal after a failed catch. Birdo's lessons about friendly and dangerous animals, a wombat, and injured quokkas are interrupted by harsh weather, and Napoleon ignores the warnings.

He narrowly avoids a stampede of brumbies, which Birdo mistakes for blinding snow. He follows a scent to a dry sugarcane field despite Birdo's concern about the dryness. A snake warns of danger just before a bushfire breaks out, and they scramble to safety as the cat returns and fails to attack Birdo.

The pair reunites with their lost flock, but the cat tracks them. Napoleon helps warn the flock and they move to safety. On a road, a frill-necked lizard lies across the stripe and survives a passing truck, then bullies Napoleon away. Napoleon and Birdo part ways, with Napoleon seeking the wild dogs and Birdo choosing to rejoin his flock.

Napoleon helps an echidna find water and seek shade. While resting, he realizes the howling he heard was only a perentie lizard imitating other animals, leaving him heartbroken about home.

A torrential rainstorm arrives, flooding the area. Napoleon discovers two dingo puppies, Sid and Nancy, in a damp cave, and Nancy is swept away by the flood. He dives to rescue her, and their mother returns, allowing Napoleon to live with the family for the time being.

The dingo mother explains that Napoleon's courage led him to help Sid and Nancy, which is the true spirit of their wild life. Napoleon bonds with Sid and Nancy as they travel together, finding belonging with the wild dogs.

Wanting to go home, Napoleon rides in a kangaroo's pouch toward Sydney. He reaches the shore and finds his basket occupied by a feisty penguin named Pengi (Conan), whose family arrives and reveals his real name, Pengi. The cat returns and threatens Napoleon once more.

A confrontation with the cat ends when Pengi distracts her and Napoleon knocks the cat off a cliff into the basket, which sails away. On a cliff, Napoleon sees an image of a wild dog howling, symbolizing his reclaimed bravery. Birdo reappears with a sea turtle and takes Napoleon back to Sydney.

Napoleon returns to Sydney with Birdo and is reunited with his mother. She agrees to call him Napoleon instead of Muffin, recognizing his bravery. The cat, carried by ocean currents, reappears one last time, still determined to get him.

The closing image suggests the cat's threat will persist, but Napoleon has embraced his dog identity. The story emphasizes that courage and spirit matter more than where he lives, leaving an ongoing sense of adventure and danger in the wild.