We attended the pet blessing yesterday in honor of the feast of St. Francis of Assisi. The event was held in a commercial center called Eastwood City. There used to be a procession before the blessing but now there's only a holy mass and a short program. I'm sure our dogs had a good time since we rarely go to such events unlike before. But now that we have 2 housemaids again maybe we can bring out dogs out once in a while.
This is a common event back home, and I've noticed that they do it yearly in Kemah, which is one town over from where I live. I've never been able to attend one of the blessings, but would love to do so. I sometimes wish cats were as easy to transport and manage as dogs, but there's no way my kitties would put up with being around that many strangers, let alone canines. If I had help and something like this (only triple, of course, since I have 3 cats), I might consider it, but that's unlikely to happen any time soon.
That is neat @Corie Henson. One of the churches I used to go to had a bless the beasts day every year. I don't think my cat would tolerate that though...He'd have to get his "blessing to go" Even the dog I had, probably wouldn't do very well at something like that. He was very insecure, and was threatened by other dogs. If your took him around other dogs, you'd have to watch him like a hawk or he might snap unprovoked.
Pickles is antisocial...maybe my fault. I should have socialized him more when he was a puppy, taken him to dog parks but I didn't like dog parks.
That's true of my two older cats. I was single for the first several years of their life, so they never got used to being around people. I've been married for more than sixteen years now but they are still very wary around my wife, and one of them hisses at her. In fairness, she hisses at me sometimes too. Ella, on the other hand, is reasonably cautious around people she doesn't know, but likes to kiss up to anyone who is visiting us. If I am holding her, she trusts me to keep her safe from everything but cars - cars panic her, but that's a good thing, I suppose. Once she sees that we're comfortable with a visitor in our house, then Ella wants to make friends. With the older ones, one of my brothers spent a week with us and only saw them a couple of times.
When we're at my daughter's where there are more people,coming and going, Pickles will still bark for awhile even though he knows the person. He settles down with some after awhile but others he just keeps barking and has to be put in his cage. He likes the friends of my grandsons more than the friends of my daughter and son in law. He doesn't like my daughter's mother in law at all, lol. We always have to put him in his cage when they are there.
Izzy does very well in public. He's been registered as a service dog now for about two years. He goes pretty much everywhere I do, with the exception of the doctor's and the grocery store. He will set in a chair in a restaurant all by himself, and he never touches the table. He a great little boy and catcher of mice. He's very proud of himself too. @Diane Lane, when is that pet blessing held in Keham? It might be something I can talk my grandson Bobert into attending with me. He also has a small dog named Taco. Here is Izzy after his last grooming and clip about six weeks ago.