In the wild there is no safety. The otter cub Tarka grows up with his mother & sisters, learning to swim, catch fish
- & to fear the cry of the hunter & the flash of the metal trap. Soon he must fend for himself, travelling through rivers, woods, moors, ponds & out to sea, sometimes with the female otters White-tip & Greymuzzle, always on the run. Eventually, chased by a pack of hounds, he meets his nemesis, the fearsome dog Deadlock, & must fight for his life.