Border collie puppy called Saffy helps teenage owner recover from debilitating mental illness

Isabelle Duff penned a book about her experiences with her dog, Saffy. (Supplied: Isabelle Duff)

The slobbery lick of a tongue and excitable, scampering cuddles from a border collie puppy marked the beginning of Isabelle Duff's mental health recovery.

In her final years of school, the teenager, from Manildra in the New South Wales central west, was so wracked by anxiety and depression she rarely attended classes. 

Just before her 18th birthday, Isabelle's father gave her a six-week-old puppy that she named Saffy. 

"My dad showed up where I was staying in Sydney with Saffy and he just sort of made everything better," Ms Duff said. 

"[Dogs] show all of their emotion and all of their joy. 

"I was in a place where I was feeling very alone and it was hard to convince myself that people cared about me. 

"You can't look at a puppy and convince yourself that they don't love you because it's just so obvious they do."

The book is told from the perspective of a border collie pup named Cookie. (Supplied: Exisle Publishing)

Saffy also turned out to be rather intuitive to what his new owner was experiencing. 

"All border collies want to do is run around in circles but he spent so much time just cuddling me because that was what I needed."

Global book deal

Saffy's arrival inspired Ms Duff to write a picture book about their friendship, her struggles, and how he nursed her back to health. 

She ended up landing an international book deal and is now a published author.

Cookie describes how his owner sometimes feels sad and doesn't want to play. (Supplied: Exisle Publishing)

The story is told from the perspective of a dog called Cookie and how he looks after his owner, Girl, who feels sad and needs lots of cuddles.

The dog calls Girl's brother, Stop It or Shoosh, depending on how she refers to him and explains how his owner's mood affected the rest of the family. 

Saffy's arrival inspired Isabelle to write a picture book about their friendship. (Supplied: Exisle Publishing)

Inspiring her peers

Ms Duff said she wanted the book to raise awareness of mental health, particularly among her peers. 

"You don't have to feel like you have a mental illness to go and get help from a psychologist, or a counsellor or your GP," she said. 

"It doesn't have to mean that you have an illness or that there's something really big wrong.

"Sometimes you just need to talk about your feelings."

She credits Saffy with helping her start on her road to recovery.

"I can't say that it only got better because of Saffy; there were a lot of doctors and psychologists and my parents and lots of people who helped me but it all started getting better when I got Saff," Ms Duff said.

"He made me so happy."

If you or anyone you know needs help, call Lifeline on 13 11 14.