Best movies & TV Shows like A Dog of Flanders

On a trip to the countryside to pick safflowers, a young Japanese woman recalls her life when she was ten years old.

Recently orphaned David must move to the Isle of Man to live with his grandfather, Adam, who's a sheep farmer. Both long for the end of the summer, having nothing in common but their love for dogs, notably Adam's precious champion sheepdog Bob. David strikes a friendship with Maggie, the sassy daughter of friendly neighbor Keith Moore, but Adam hates that family on account of an old canine competition-related tragedy. Other neighbors suspect Bob and the Moore's dog of the recent series of nocturnal sheep-kills.

A girl, abandoned by her mother when she was three, moves to a small town in Florida with her father. There, she adopts an orphaned dog she names Winn-Dixie. The bond between the girl and her special companion brings together the people in a small Florida town and heals her own troubled relationship with her father.

Fearing that he costs too much to feed, Clifford decides to join a traveling carnival so he can enter a talent contest in hopes of winning a lifetime supply of Tummy Yummies treats. Joined by his friends Cleo and T-Bone, Clifford meets up with Shackleford the High-Flying Ferret and Rodrigo Chihuahua of Steel, as they work together to turn a broken-down act into a record-breaking show.

Adaptation of Ouida's sentimental classic about a poor Flemish boy (Frankie Thomas) whose ambition is to become a painter.

The emotional story of a boy, his grandfather, and his dog. The boy's dream of becoming a great classical painter appears shattered when his loving grandfather dies.

Isabella, the daughter of the noble York family, is enrolled in an all-girls academy to be groomed into a dame worthy of nobility. However, she has given up on her future, seeing the prestigious school as nothing more than a prison from the outside world. Her family notices her struggling in her lessons and decides to hire Violet Evergarden to personally tutor her under the guise of a handmaiden. At first, Isabella treats Violet coldly. Violet seems to be able to do everything perfectly, leading Isabella to assume that she was born with a silver spoon. After some time, Isabella begins to realize that Violet has had her own struggles and starts to open up to her. Isabella soon reveals that she has lost contact with her beloved younger sister, whom she yearns to see again. Having experienced the power of words through her past clientele, Violet asks if Isabella wishes to write a letter to Taylor. Will Violet be able to help Isabella convey her feelings to her long-lost sister?

Rikka is a ninja descendant. Her grandfather Hyoe is the last chief of their ninja clan and her father is a cyborg researcher. Both are killed when a weapons' company raids his lab to use his research. Rikka sets out to avenge their deaths.

The first part of Bill Douglas' influential trilogy harks back to his impoverished upbringing in early-'40s Scotland. Cinema was his only escape - he paid for it with the money he made from returning empty jam jars - and this escape is reflected most closely at this time of his life as an eight-year-old living on the breadline with his half-brother and sick grandmother in a poor mining village.

Heidi (1974) Japanese anime series by Zuiyo Eizo (now Nippon Animation) based on the Swiss novel Heidi's Years of Wandering and Learning by Johanna Spyri (1880). It was directed by Isao Takahata A feature-length film Heidi in the Mountains, aka The Story of Heidi, was edited from the series by Zuiyo (which by then was a separate entity from Nippon Animation, which employed many of the TV series' animation staff) distributed in 1979. All cast were replaced excluding Heidi and the grandfather. This movie is also the only incarnation of the Heidi anime to have been released commercially in the United States in English (on home video in the 1980s). Isao Takahata remarked "Neither Hayao Miyazaki nor I are completely related to any shortening version" on this work.

Poor but happy, young Nello and his grandfather live alone, delivering milk as a livelihood, in the outskirts of Antwerp, a city in Flanders (the Flemish or Dutch-speaking part of modern-day Belgium). They discover a beaten dog (a Bouvier, a large sturdy dog native to Flanders) and adopt it and nurse it back to health, naming it Patrasche, the middle name of Nello's mother Mary, who died when Nello was very young. Nello's mother was a talented artist, and like his mother, he delights in drawing, and his friend Aloise is his model and greatest fan and supporter.

While coming to terms with his dad's recent passing in a tractor accident, 13-year-old George McCray is living with his grandparents on their Kansas farm. George misses his mom, Jill, who has moved to Minnesota to deal with her grief, but there is the promise of their reunion at Christmas. George feels needed on the farm as he helps his grateful grandfather Bo with daily chores and comforts his grandmother Cora. He has also made friends with Mary Ann and became attached to Tucker, the smart and friendly dog the McCrays take in when his troubled owner Frank Thorne lands in jail.

Cesar Millan has been called the Dr. Phil for Dogs. With an uncanny ability to rehabilitate problem dogs of all shapes and sizes. Each episode of the Dog Whisperer documents the remarkable transformations that take place under Cesar's guidance and teaching, helping dogs and their owners live happier lives together.

Peppa Pig is an energetic piggy who lives with Mummy, Daddy, and little brother George. She loves to jump in mud puddles and make loud snorting noises.

Judy Abbott is an orphan living in New York, who at the age of 17 finds herself in receipt of a college scholarship and monthly allowance from a mysterious benefactor. Her benefactor believes she has great potential as a writer and wishes to see her succeed. The only payment he asks in return is that she write him a letter every month addressed to the pseudonym "Mr. John Smith", with the understanding that he will never reply.

The storyline revolved around Roo-bear Koala and his friends in a utopian village. The series takes place in Australia, with the village being located in the shadow of The Breadknife. Including different types of animal creatures in the daily life of the village was likely meant to demonstrate the virtues of pluralism and diversity.

Tohru Honda is 16 year old orphaned girl who gets invited to live in the house of her classmate, the handsome boy Sohma Yuki, and his cousins, 16 year old Kyo and 27 year old Shigure. However, these young men and parts of the rest of their family (both close and distant) hold a curse; if they are hugged by the opposite gender, they transform into animals of the Chinese Zodiac. Everyday is an adventure for sweet Tohru, as she gets to know everyone in the large family better (especially Yuki and Kyo), in both common and bizarre situations. But, the Sohma Family curse is certainly no laughing matter... it also holds horrible cruelty and heartbreak.

Sanshiro, a teenage martial artist, trains in the Kurenai School of Jiujitsu and searches for his father's killer. Accompanying Sanshiro is an orphaned boy named Kenbo and his pet dog Boke. Sanshiro's only clue to his father's murderer is a glass eye left on the scene of the crime, suggesting that his father's murderer was one-eyed.

Perrine is a young girl who lives in Bosnia with her Indian mother and beloved father – that is, until her father passes away, leaving her mother with a single wish: travel to France to be with his father. The over 1,000 kilometer journey seems unfathomable, but Perrine and her mother have a plan: they will photograph people in the towns along the way to support themselves. With their hardy donkey Palikare and faithful dog Baron, the two set forth for Paris; along the way they encounter kind souls, barren villages, and a number of hardships; will Perrine and her mother survive the long journey to France?

Remi lives with his mother in a French village. His father, Barberin, works in Paris. When he returns wounded and hard-hearted, Remi discovers he is actually a foundling. Barberin sells Remi to a traveling artist, Vitalis, and his animals troop. Heart-broken Remi leaves his home to face the hardships of a traveling artist's life. In Vitalis Remi finds the father he lacks. On his way Remi meets a kind rich woman and her sick son, who are actually his real mother and brother. Though life with them is nice, Remi, not knowing the truth, chooses to leave with Vitalis. Tragedies strike one after another to leave Remi alone with the faithful dog Capi. Between staying with a family of gardeners, where he gets attached to the youngest mute daughter Lise, and traveling with his best friend Mattia, earning his living by playing the harp, Remi searches for a place in life... Until he discovers his real parents may be alive, and undertakes a perilous journey to London in search of his family.

Remy, a cheerful and tender-hearted girl, lives with her mother in a French country town. One day her father returns to the town after a long period working away from home in a city. Her father tells Remy that she isn’t their real daughter, and Remy is almost sold to an evil slave trader. It is Vitaris, a strolling entertainer, who helps Remy. Vitaris discovers her talent for singing and decides to take her in with his troupe. Remy starts her journey with Vitaris and his troupe animals such as the monkey Georicoule and the dogs Capi, Dolce, and Zelbino.

The story centers on Kana Nakamichi, a middle-school girl who had already lost her parents and just recently lost her only remaining relative, her grandmother. As a result, she ends up living and working at a newspaper delivery office. Everyone else living at the office are all charming, self-assertive bishōjo. The show follows Kana’s daily life in the fast-paced yet joyous environment.

After becoming an orphan, Heidi is forced to live with her grandfather Öhi who lives in the mountain Alps. However he is a very bitter man who only accepts to take her in by force. Heidi's kindness may be able to open Öhi's heart. Along with Peter the goat carer and the crippled Klara, Heidi has a lot of adventures.

By force of circumstances, a 30-year-old single man with a full-time job suddenly starts raising a 6-year-old girl. While running each other ragged, the two of them gradually grow into a "family".

Sporting designer clothes, make-up, and nails, Ran Kotobuki is the very picture of a trendy, young Shibuya girl, but don't let that fool you. This girl comes from a family of cops, and she’s ready to lay you out flat if you even think about causing trouble in her town! At least, she will... when she’s not distracted with karaoke, shopping, and dodging her homework. Join Ran and her friends as they defend the streets of Shibuya and attempt to shop their way into the history books as the most famous Gals ever!

Anne Shirley goes through quite a lot of adventures before she ends up in Green Gables. She is living with a family and helps out by looking after the kids, helping in the chores around the home... Meanwhile she discovers more about who she is, that her name is "Anne" and not "Ann"... And she just is her adorable but a bit crazy self.

An anime series based on the children's book and set in the Swiss mountain village of Rossinière.

When a certain man is released from prison, he knows exactly where he's heading first. After falling in love with a traditional comic storyteller's rendition of the story called "Shinigami," he is determined to become his apprentice. The performer, Yakumo, has never taken an apprentice before, but to everyone's surprise, he accepts the eager ex-prisoner, nicknaming him "Yotaro." As Yotaro happily begins his new life, he meets others in Yakumo's life, including Yakumo's ward Konatsu. Konatsu was the daughter of a famous storyteller, and Yakumo took her in after her father's tragic death. Konatsu loved her father's storytelling, and would love to become a performer in her own right—but that path is not available for women.

Nan Harding is the new student at Mr. and Mrs. Bhaer's school. Everyone thinks that she is a pain in the head, but not Mrs. Jo. Together with the other kids, they all embark on their personal adventures and misfortunes while learning in school.

The story is set in 1914 in Breisford in Wisconsin, near Lake Koshgonong. One spring day the little Sterling finds in the forest a raccoon cub whose mother has just been killed by a hunter; He decides to treat him and keep him by giving him the name Rascal. The boy and the raccoon become inseparable friends from that day, although Sterling soon realizes, after a series of small disasters that Rascal causes in the gardens of neighbors, that cohabitation between men and wild animals can sometimes be very difficult . Thus began the last unforgettable year of Sterling childhood, punctuated by small and big adventures with its large Rascal friends, Oscar and Alice among the animals she loves so much, but marked by the death of the mother and the financial ruin of the father who lost almost all that he has to repay debts.

After a family tragedy turns her life upside down, 16-year-old high school student Tohru Honda takes matters into her own hands and moves out… into a tent! Unfortunately for her, she pitches her new home on private land belonging to the mysterious Soma clan, and it isn't long before the owners discover her secret. But, as Tohru quickly finds out when the family offers to take her in, the Somas have a secret of their own—when hugged by the opposite sex, they turn into the animals of the Chinese Zodiac!

Famous Dog Lassie is a 1996 Japanese anime series produced by Nippon Animation as the 23rd entry of the World Masterpiece Theater staple. The anime is based on the 1940 novel Lassie Come-Home by Eric Knight and also the second animated Lassie series ever produced, since Lassie's Rescue Rangers.

Doug is a young robot who senses there’s more to life than just the facts. While other robots plug in for their daily download, Doug unplugs and journeys into the human world with his best friend Emma to experience its wonders firsthand.

Koguma is a high school girl in Yamanashi. She has no parents, friends, or hobbies, and her daily life is empty. One day, Koguma gets a used Honda Super Cub motorcycle. This is her first time going to school on a motorcycle. Running out of gas and hitting detours become a small source of adventure in Koguma's life. She is satisfied with this strange transformation, but her classmate Reiko ends up talking to her about how she also goes to school by motorcycle. One Super Cub begins to open up a lonely girl's world, introducing her to a new everyday life and friendship.

Papuwa-kun is a young boy living a quiet life with his dog, Chappy, on a small island located somewhere in South Pacific, when Shintarou, who is being pursued by gangsters, invades their happy existence. Chappi takes Shintarou's precious Jewel, thereby making the two main characters lifelong rivals. Together they experience a series of bizarre adventures and situations.