Three years after the events of the first film, veterinarian Dr. John Dolittle's ability to talk to animals has made him famous, and he travels the world performing his skills.

Charisse's boyfriend Eric joins the family for the former’s 16th birthday party, where an opossum and a raccoon named Joey tell John that their boss, the Godbeaver (Godfather of the rodent mafia), wants to see him.

John meets the Godbeaver and agrees to save the forest from being cut down by mating an endangered female Pacific western bear with a male.

Struggling to train Archie, who is used to the pampered lifestyle, John hires the local forest creatures to chaperone Charisse and Eric, and neglects his wife Lisa.

Humiliated, he refuses to leave his new-found cave, but becomes frustrated with John's insults and knocks him into a muddy hole, finally listening to his "inner bear".

Charisse, Eric, and Maya rebel against the loggers with the aid of wolves, while word of Archie's predicament spreads, leading animals around the world to go on strike.

While Riley takes the brunt from the birds, wolves, and bees, Mr. Potter is cornered by Ava and Joey, forcing him to finally start negotiating with John and the animals.

On its opening weekend, the film grossed $25,037,039 from 3,049 theaters in the United States and Canada, ranking #2 at the box office, behind The Fast and the Furious.

The site's critics consensus reads: "Although there are laughs to be had in Dr. Dolittle 2, its preoccupation with toilet humor and Murphy's restrained performance makes this a missed opportunity".

[2] Rita Kempley of The Washington Post praised Eddie Murphy saying that after having been upstaged by the animals in the first film "brings bite as well as bark to the funnier sequel".