A Uniting Church reverend has been reunited with his beloved Border collie, Rose, after his car was stolen with the dog inside on Wednesday afternoon.

George Buckle said he left his keys in the white Holden Commodore VS station wagon while he ducked into the IGA supermarket in Kangaroo Flat about 1pm.

“I just slipped in to get a paper actually, and I thought the dog would be a deterrent to anybody pinching it and I left the keys in the car,” he said.

The 83-year-old said Rose had been his “constant companion” since his wife, Joan, passed away three years ago.

“She grieved with me,” he said. “I never go anywhere without the dog.”

Mr Buckle, who has been a reverend at the Long Gully Uniting Church for a decade, said Rose had travelled more than 12,000 kilometres around Australia with him.

“I was ecstatic – just ecstatic – to be reunited with her,” he said. “I didn’t care about the car, just the dog.”

Mr Buckle said he was “overwhelmed” at the community’s support in ensuring Rose, found wandering in Flora Hill, was returned to him.