Just as Jacob was about to finish his degree at Cornell’s veterinary school, he experiences a hard tragedy. While he takes his final exams he is informed that his parents had died in a car accident. Then to add to that he finds out that he is left with no job, no money, and no inheritance. Coincidentally he finds a train while running away from what he knew was home. Not knowing that the train was a traveling train for a circus called The Benzini Brothers. He finds himself being the vet of the animals that are used in the show. While fighting his own battles on thinking he’s not a really Vet, he ends up being the best thing that has happened to the Benzini Brothers. Furthermore he ends up slowly falling in love with the beautiful wife of his boss, August. Understanding that August’s wife, Marlena, is off limits Jacob tries to snap out of it and focus on the animals.

August had made the purchase of a new elephant named Rosie. Just like every other animal, Rosie was not looking to do things on command, until Jacob had turned everything around and made Rosie and Marlena the leading stars of the Benzini Brothers Circus. After a party to celebrate the success of the circus, Jacob and Marlena run off to share romantic moments together. August finds out what had happened, but keeps it to himself. Jealous and angry, August lashes out on Jacob and leaves him with bruises on his face and disappointment on Marlena’s. Marlena ends up leaving August and falling more in love with Jacob. Both of their positions at the circus are threatened when they find out that Marlena is pregnant and the circus is running out of money to pay workers.

Then one dark night Jacob has the chance to kill August but backs out. But when coming back to the circus he finds that some of the people that were thrown off the train, had come back and released all the animals out of their cages. Causing a catastrophe, August then lashes out on Marlena, and almost killing her, Rosie the very brave elephant kills August by driving the stake that once kept her to the ground, through his head. Both Marlena and Jacob are free from all the nonsense, and save as many animals as they can. Jacob goes back to Cornell and finishes his exam to make it legal that he is a Veterinarian, when done with this you would think that he would find a job in a vet office, he goes back to the circus life and joins the Ringling Brothers Circus with his wife and new born baby boy to start a new life.