When a pigeon flies through the Simpsons' home and suffers a broken wing, Bart makes it his duty to care for the bird - whom he names Ray - and nurse it back to health. When Ray is ready to fly, Homer decides to enter him in a bird race when Danica Patrick appears to him in a dream. Things don't go according to plan, however, when Santa's Little Helper swallows Ray. Worried that Bart needs some help getting over the loss, Marge and Homer take him to a therapy session with Dr. Thurston, who advises that the only cure for Bart's blues is to give away the family dog. But when the Simpsons visit the pup's new home, a shock causes them to rethink their decision. Blackboard: ' "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" is as good as "A Charlie Brown Christmas" '.

Homer spends New Year's Eve in the Springfield Penitentiary after getting caught bribing an official. An FBI investigator offers to reduce his jail time if Homer agrees to go undercover as an informant to investigate Fat Tony. When Homer forges a special bond with Fat Tony and his family, he becomes conflicted between his obligation to the government and his loyalty to his new family. After an unexpected turn of events, Fat Tony's cousin Fit Tony seeks to settle a score with Homer, but winds up teaching him an important lesson. Blackboard: 'Candy Canes are not Elf bones'.