Patty Grant, a faltering grad student in San Diego, learns that she needs to move out of her beloved rental with almost no notice. But she wonders: What should she do about the young child tied to a doghouse in a backyard down the street? After all, her calls to child services just go unanswered and none of the neighbors seems to have noticed... . One spur-of-the-moment decision changes Patty's life-- but she couldn't just leave that stray child behind,...