A ruthless property developer wants to buy Merrydown Farm. His plan is to change it from a working farm into a bungalow park with golf courses and a spa hotel. This would destroy the natural habitat of all the wild animals. All the farm animals would have to leave as well. Cornelius, a wise old owl, contacts his distant relative Horatio. Horatio is a military expert. (Well, he hatched in the grounds of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.) Under their leadership the animals fight back.