Melbourne Cup 2015 winner Prince of Penzance was the guest of honour at St Joseph's Catholic Church in Warrnambool on Friday evening for the Blessing of the Animals.
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The Thoroughbred joined a flock of dogs for the annual blessing which Father John Fitzgerald said was a popular event for his congregation and school students.
"Every October for the last few years we've held the Blessing of the Animals," he said.
"The main reason for it is to acknowledge St Francis of Assisi who lived in the 12-13th centuries.
"St Francis gave away his riches and spent his life loving and respecting all that God made. He lived by the first book of the Bible, Genesis, which states all that God made is good and he is the creator of all creatures and we must be respectful to all animals big and small."
Father John blessed all the animals who came to the service and was delighted Prince of Penzance could be apart of it.
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