Milo Terkel has a social-climbing wife, Emily, who is preoccupied with being involved with the rest-stops-for-birds-flying-south project of Mrs. Cornelius Belmont; a spend-thrift daughter, Debbie, preoccupied with her engagement to Cornelius Belmont III; and an over-the-hill, aging ex-jock of a brother-in-law, George Baxter, who free-loads off of and lives with the Terkel family. Enter Lawyer Henry Cadawaller who informs Milo he has inherited a dog, Joe, which the late owner guarantees will change Milo`s life. It does, as Joe can talk (but does so only to Milo), and Joe is full of advice, mostly with dire consequences for Milo. Joe`s first pearl of wisdom advises Milo to get tough at home, he does, and wife and daughter and even the hard-to-offend George depart.Milo goes to a bar and Joe soon has him involved with Gorgeous Gilmore, girl friend of Louie who is one tough cookie indeed and prone (actually programmed) to get physical.