SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- It's that time of the year again. On Friday, San Francisco's four-legged residents gathered for St. Anthony Foundation's beloved annual "Blessing of the Animals" event. People and pets gather for San Francisco's annual 'Blessing of the Animals' event. Photo Courtesy: St. Anthony's Foundation‘Dayo’ the therapy dog is semi-finalist for American Humane Award Every year, on Oct. 4, Christians from around the world celebrate the Feast of Saint Francis -- the patron saint of animals -- with a blessing of animals and prayers for creation. This year, San Franciscan friars gathered in the Tenderloin district to bless dogs, cats, and birds alike. People and pets gather for San Francisco's annual 'Blessing of the Animals' event. Photo Courtesy: St. Anthony's FoundationPeople and pets gather for San Francisco's annual 'Blessing of the Animals' event. Photo Courtesy: St. Anthony's FoundationPeople and pets gather for San Francisco's annual 'Blessing of the Animals' event. Photo Courtesy: St. Anthony's Foundation The Friars were joined by the De Marillac Children's Choir, which provided free music to attendees. Animal Care and Control also gave away free dog and cat food, squeaky toys, leashes, microchipping and vaccinations. A Buddhist monk blesses an elephant before Thai Muslim boys ride in a parade prior to their circumcision ritual by a village elder at Thailand's southern province of Narathiwat on May 2, 2019. (Photo by Madaree TOHLALA / AFP) (Photo by MADAREE TOHLALA/AFP via Getty Images)Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos III (C) lets a dove go during a ceremony marking the Orthodox Feast of the Epiphany on January 18, 2013 at the Qasr al-Yahud baptismal site in the West Bank by the Jordan River. Theophilos III led the ceremony during which thousands of Orthodox Christians braved rain to plunge into plastic tubs filled with its murky water to celebrate Jesus's baptism. AFP PHOTO/ POOL ABIR SULTAN (Photo by ABIR SULTAN / POOL / AFP) (Photo by ABIR SULTAN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)An Jewish child circles a chicken above his head 01 October 2003 in the ultra-Ortodox town of Bnei Brak, north of Tel Aviv, as he blesses himself and clears his sins ahead of the feast of Yom Kippur, the holiest day for Jews, taking place the beginning of next week. AFP PHOTO/Yoav LEMMER (Photo by YOAV LEMMER / AFP) (Photo by YOAV LEMMER/AFP via Getty Images)Los Angeles Bishop John Ward blesses a Macaw bird during a Blessing of The Animals ceremony on Olvera Street, April 2, 1983 near downtown Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Bob Riha, Jr./Getty Images)VATICAN CITY, VATICAN - JANUARY 17: Cardinal Angelo Comastri blesses horses in front of the Saint Peter Basilica, during a traditional day of blessing of the animals, on January 17, 2013 in Vatican City, Vatican. Every year, during the feast of St. Anthony the Abbot, the traditional blessing of the animals is celebrated. (Photo by Giorgio Cosulich/Getty Images)People wait with their pets for the Blessing of the Animals during the St. Francis Day Service at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City on October 01, 2023. (Photo by Leonardo Munoz / AFP) (Photo by LEONARDO MUNOZ/AFP via Getty Images) The "Blessing of the Animals" celebrations aren't just celebrated by Christian communities. The religious event is also practiced by the Buddhist community prior to an animal's circumcision, the Jewish community during Passover, and the Japanese Shinto community as manifestations of the divine, to name a few.