Bernard saves three rare hairless monkeys, Emile, Zola and Titus, during an Amazonian anteater trek after witnessing their mother being shot by a short-sighted trophy hunter. Their incredible acrobatics catch the eye of Sebastian Trophy-Assetclass, presenter of Fame Me! and shampoo model who lures them away from Bernard with the promise of fame and fortune.

Bernard finds happiness again after saving 46 zoo animals from being shot by trophy hunter, Baron Von Hesti, who says he wants to avenge his wife Bunny’s death. She was allegedly savaged by two tigers she’d hand-reared. When Bernard calls Von a Hesti a murderer to his face, he unexpectedly hands him the zoo. Bernard renames it Fluffingdale Zoo and after coaxing Loki, a cat, and Armando, a giant anteater, out of their depression, they become his new companions.

Bernard rarely sees the monkeys and learns they will be performing at the Christmas Royal Variety Show in front of the Queen. However, Larold, Sebastian’s 11-year-old niece, alerts Bernard to the truth: with the help of a quack doctor, Dr Wu, Sebastian plans to turn the hairless monkeys into hair restoring potion for him and his gruesome nightclub owning pal Virgil Boghero. Bernard and Larold warn the monkeys who come up with a plan to humiliate Sebastian in front of millions of TV viewers. The monkeys move back with Bernard as does Larold who has nowhere else to go. She begins to challenge Bernard about how his parents - famous conservationists who campaigned against trophy hunting and animal trafficking - died in a mysterious hot air ballooning accident. Bernard has always blamed himself and Larold helps Bernard discover he isn’t to blame but that someone else is.

Meanwhile, fur from the zoo animals begins disappearing. Is it anything to do with the raggedy beast lurking in the garden. Or is it another outbreak of a deadly man-made virus fluffititus? Or even the monkeys, who are jealous of the zoo animals’ fur? Larold and Bernard stake out the zoo and capture the phantom fur shaver in the act.

Shortly afterwards, a family of warthogs solve the mystery of his parents’ deaths and Bernard brings the culprits to justice at last.

The story touches on friendship and love, as well as darker themes of loss, trophy hunting and the illegal trade in animal parts used in quack medicine.