KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 20 — Getting ready for church took on a whole new level for hundreds of Spanish pet owners who brought their beloved animals to church recently for a special blessing ceremony.

Dogs, cats, birds and guinea pigs from Madrid and across Spain were groomed extra to look their Sunday best on Jan 17, St Anthony Day, the patron saint of animals.

A few dogs barked, but most animals waited patiently to be sprinkled with holy water by Catholic priests on the steps of the baroque St Anthony’s Church in central Madrid, Reuters reported.

Priest Angel Garcia then said mass in front of dozens of pets inside, also to some barking from the pews.

Carlos Cabestany, 51, brought his greyhound, Rita. "We are from the neighbourhood and every year, if I have a dog, I like to take her to St Anthony. It is a Madrid tradition and we like to keep it alive,” he said.

Across the Atlantic, a similar scene unfolded at churches in Mexico City and all over Mexico on the same day.

Dogs, cats, birds, guinea pigs, rabbits and turtles flocked to church with their human parents to be sprinkled with holy water that will protect them from misfortune and danger.

Armando, a resident of Xochimilco, Mexico City, who brought his bulldog to be blessed said, "They’re part of our family. If he is unwell, I think we are doing badly as well. We are doing good if he is good. It’s mainly the importance we give them.”

The Catholic tradition was brought to Mexico during Spanish colonial rule in the 1500s.

St. Anthony, a fourth-century Christian monk born in Egypt, came to have a special relationship with animals while living an ascetic life in the desert for 13 years. He is said to have preached to them while they listened attentively.

Catholic farmers traditionally looked to St. Anthony to bless their fields and their work with animals. It was once a worldwide Catholic tradition, but has disappeared in many places.

The blessing of animals is still carried out in some European countries. In the 1990s, the practice saw a revival in some parts of the world where it had been forgotten, Mexico News Daily reported.