The pair bonded forever in July, 1997, after The Advocate reported on its front page the dumping of eight puppies near the Daylesford tip.

Kaz picked the sad and shy Jonah up and hasn't looked back since. Nor has he.

Both have saved each other from the unthinkable and the inseparable duo are now planning a journey around Australia.

Growing up, Kaz thought she was a dog.

"I'd sit around licking my ice cream, making sure each dog got a lick too," she said.

When Kaz heard about the dumped litter - and that they were on the brink of being put down - she was determined to save at least one.

"There were two puppies left. Jonah was the biggest. When I picked him up he melted into my shoulder. I felt the love straight away."

The effects of Jonah's traumatic first weeks still linger.

"He's very nervous around people. He'll bark and then hide."

The German shepherd-kelpie cross was destined to be much more than just a companion animal.

"Jonah's a happy boy. He sings in the morning and likes to smell flowers."

Both of Kaz's parents died in the early 1990's, a dark episode that was followed by the deaths of four very close friends over the next four years.

She was left questioning fate and existence, including her own.

"This set me on a spiritual path."

She turned to Jonah for support and he was there for her - just as she had been there for him when he desperately needed a friend.

"I was in a black place. There was something about Jonah's little spirit - he needed me as much as I needed him.

"Jonah makes me laugh - and I realised I hadn't laughed in so long."

Kaz said she did not know where she would be today without Jonah's love and friendship.

The two have never been apart since the first day they met.

"We're a piece together. He's a good listener, a good cuddler. A dog will never lie, never cheat - and yet people can treat them cruelly."