Blessings for dogs? Faithful turn to St. Anthony for blessings

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Behaving at their best, a dozen dogs attended Mass at Mexico City's cathedral Friday, waiting for their turn to be doused with holy water.

The blessing of the animals is a long-time Catholic tradition celebrated Jan. 17. On this day, Mexican Catholic congregations and priests welcome pups, cats and the occasional parrot on the feast day of St. Anthony the Abbot, considered the patron saint of animals.

A few parishioners dress up their beloved pets with sweaters or scarves. But all pray to God and their four-legged friends' patron to keep them healthy and safe.

Karla Flores feels as if Lana, her 11-year-old dog, was a true blessing. Someone abandoned her as a newborn outside her home on Dec. 12, when millions of Mexican Catholics celebrate Our Lady of Guadalupe.

“We found her next to her mom and little brothers inside a box,” Flores said. “We rescued them and gave up most of them for adoption, but we kept her and her mom.”

Recently, Lana has been depressed and sick, Flores said, so a blessing felt in order.

Rocky, a black, poodle-looking dog, came with owner Naydelin Aguilar. He was a gift from her mother during the pandemic, she said, and will forever feel grateful for the joy he's brought into her life.

“We have faced tough situations,” Aguilar said. “But he's been like a light for us during the storms we have endured, and this will be his fifth year as part of our family.”

The Rev. José Antonio Carballo, rector of the cathedral, addressed the pets waiting attentively and calmly in their owners' arms during his service.

“We ask the Lord to bless them, so he can preserve them and care for them, since they bring company and encouragement to their caretakers,” Carballo said.

As soon as he finished noon Mass, pet owners headed to the cathedral's entrance, where Carballo sprinkled holy water on both humans and pets.

There was Jerome, a black and tan colored yorkie, held by loving owner Gabriela Viquez.

She adopted him four years ago as a pup and immediately fell head over heels for him. Since then, on the anniversary of the day he arrived home, she gets a cake and hosts a party to celebrate Jerome.

“I once spoke to a person who can talk to animals and she told me that he once was a gift for someone, but was later abandoned and beaten, so he carried a lot of trauma,” Viquez said.

“We are now very happy together and it was a fortune to have found each other.”