A young boy reluctantly accompanies his older brother to Japan, but after spending the summer visiting his pen pal and learning about that country's customs, he is glad that he went.
Shawn and his dog Keeper remain the best of friends even after the show-and-tell where Keeper trips the teacher, spills glue, knocks over the fish tank, and doesn't perform a single trick.
Because Shawn and his dog Keeper were born on the same day, they share a wonderful party on their sixth birthday, until it appears that Keeper has eaten the cake.