Today is World Animal Day. To celebrate, animals all over the world have received special blessings, including at Brisbane’s RSPCA.

Jack Jones reports.

TRANSCRIPT

The 4th of October is Saint Francis Day, but to the RSPCA it’s World Animal Day.

Father Olaf Anderson, Parish Priest St Michael’s Anglican Church: “God said let the water bring forth swarms of living creatures.”

The day is based on the life of Saint Francis, a famous Catholic friar, but also a man who had a strong love for all creatures.

Today shelter pets were blessed, and similar ceremonies are planned for churches all over the world on Sunday.

Father Olaf Anderson, Parish Priest St Michael’s Anglican Church: “Normally people in our congregation only have two legs, but this Sunday, half of them will have more than two. So four legs will come in, and people are very keen.”

The animals loved the attention as Father Olaf blessed each one individually.

Nathan Armite, Senior Animal Tender RSPCA: “They always tend to kow what’s going on with all the activity and hustle and bustle, but a lot of them actually quite enjoy it. They like the attention and it’s quite a good experience.”

Dogs, cats, chickens, and even a goat felt the love.

The RSPCA has a re-homing rate of around 88% for dogs like Rona here, but many pets still require new owners.

Jack Jones, QUT News.