LUFKIN, Texas (KTRE) - St. Cyprian's Episcopal Church in Lufkin welcomed dogs, cats and even a snake Sunday for its annual Blessing of the Animals.

The event fell on Oct. 4, the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi, the 13th-century patron saint of animals and the environment.

The Rev. Ashley Cook, interim clergy for about a year, offered blessings and thanksgiving for the animals."We may go to different churches or no church at all. But our animals and our love of them and our care for them really unites us as a community," Cook said.