Oliver, an orange orphan cat, is lost in New York City. A street-smart dog named Dodger finds him. Dodger tricks Oliver into getting some sausages for him (from a hot dog seller named Louie). Dodger leaves the cat behind and runs to the barge of his poor owner, Fagin. Inside the barge are four other dogs. They are Tito the chihuahua, Einstein the Great Dane, Rita the Afghan Hound, and the Francis the Bulldog. Oliver breaks in, and is questioned by the other dogs. He tells them that he followed Dodger because he wanted a fair share of the sausages. Dodger starts fighting with Tito. Francis and Einstein join the fight. Fagin breaks it up. Fagin is in trouble with a loan shark named Sykes, because he owes Sykes money. Sykes says that Fagin has to pay the money within three days. In order to get the money, Fagin, his dogs, and Oliver set out into the city streets the next day. While the poor man is unlucky trying to sell his useless stuff, the animals encounter a limousine that is driven by Winston, a butler. They put on an act to get his attention. After trying to take apart the limousine's dashboard, Tito gets "barbecued". Oliver is tangled up in the wires nearby. Jenny, a little girl who Winston is taking care of while her parents are away on a trip, decides to adopt Oliver. She takes him home at Fifth Avenue. She promises that they will be "good company" forever. The next morning, Fagin's dogs break into the family's house in order to get Oliver back to their barge. This upsets the family's pet poodle, Georgette. However, she lets them take Oliver. When they arrive back at the barge, Oliver explains that he misses Jenny. This upsets Dodger, because he feels like Oliver does not care about being in their gang anymore. Fagin, however, realizes that Oliver is his best hope, because of the gold tag on his collar. Fagin writes a random note to the "very rich cat owner person" at Oliver's address in hopes of getting Sykes's money on time. Jenny reads the note after she comes home from school. She and Georgette go to the docks to get Oliver back. Jenny gets him back, thanks to Fagin. However, Sykes kidnaps her for the sake of the ransom that Fagin has to pay within 12 hours. Fagin and his dogs manage to save both Jenny and Oliver from the wrath of Sykes and his Dobermans, Roscoe and DeSoto. The next day, Jenny celebrates her birthday with Oliver, Fagin, the dogs, and Winston. In the end, Oliver decides to stay with Jenny. Dodger promises him a special place in the gang, as "vice president". Dodger and the gang all return home with Fagin.