A Brazilian priest is attempting to find homes for a slew of stray dogs by welcoming them into his church in the hopes that people will adopt them.
Father Joo Paulo Araujo Gomes, the pastor of Santana parish in the Brazilian city of Gravatá, began bringing abandoned animals inside his church to show them off to potential adoptive families.
When he saw so many street animals, the priest grew concerned and decided he had to do something to aid them.
With such in mind, he takes them into his rectory and even brings them inside the church to include them in his service.
The dogs frequently fall asleep on the altar and are pampered by his congregation. The parishioners are supposed to view the dogs and fall in love with them. As a result, the dogs will be able to find a forever home.
If you can believe it, Father Gomes got the idea from someone offering him cookies. He left the cookies out at mass, and as you could expect, they were all seized and consumed.
Then he came across a kennel with 96 dogs and reasoned that if the cookies moved quickly, why shouldn’t the dogs?
His daring plan came to fruition flawlessly.
“Then I began to bring the dogs to mass, with the same hopes of giving them away,” he told Metro.
“I completed this process in 6 months.” All of the dogs were adopted. I now work with stray dogs. They occasionally enter the cathedral in search of food and water.
“During worship, we spoke about street dogs and how to appreciate and protect them.” The church also contributes to a castration effort (to reduce the number of street dogs).”
It’s difficult to see castration as a positive thing, but if it reduces the number of stray dogs on the streets, it’s probably for the best.
“We also support dogs in emergencies, such as victims of violence or health difficulties,” he continued.
The number of stray dogs in the region has significantly decreased as a result of his efforts. Oh, and you better believe Father Gomes has developed feelings for a few of the dogs.
He has, in fact, adopted three of them. The dogs accompany him everywhere and even share a bed with him.
