They say we are a nation of dog lovers but the congregation of a rural Sussex church have been taking their passion for pets one step further.

All creatures great and small packed into St Margaret's Church in Isfield, near Lewes, to be blessed during an annual pet service.

Labradors lolled in the aisles, spaniels sat on the pews and bull terriers barked throughout the prayers inside the tiny church on Sunday.

Dogs weren't the only animals to receive a pastoral pat on the head. Cockerels, guinea pigs, hens, hamsters, rabbits and rats all queued up to be blessed by the Reverend Brian Melbourne.

Wendy Chandler, from Isfield, brought her 19-year-old cat Sadie along for the tenth year. Although Mrs Chandler attributes the feline's long life to the service, Sadie groaned loudly throughout.

Mrs Chandler said: "I like her to be blessed because she is very special to me. I think it has helped her live to such a ripe old age, although she is a bit fed-up today."

The menagerie of animals queued up in as orderly a fashion as possible to be blessed by Mr Melbourne. If they weren't too fierce, he touched them on the head and said: "I hope you live a long, healthy life and are a good pet for your owners."

When confronted with Buffy the Staffordshire bull terrier-cross, he said: "You need a lot of prayers saying for you."

Buffy, nicknamed Slayer by her owners Sue and Michael Andrews, had just lunged at a timid spaniel.

Jonathon Gilman, eight, brought along his pet hen, Naughty. However she didn't live up to her name.

He said: "She has been very good today. When we brought her last year she ran around all over the church. We brought Philip the cockerel too then."

Mr Melbourne blessed the box Naughty was nestling in.

He said: "This service has been going for a few years. I came here a year ago and this is the first one I've been to.

"It's marvellous. I'm glad there were a few barks during the prayers and hymns. I think the animals were joining in because they respond to what goes on around them.

"As a nation we have a reputation of being a bit daft and we tend to spoil our pets.

"I think the French have the right idea. If you go into a restaurant there you often see a poodle sitting up at the table and I think that's lovely.

"We have a sentimental attitude towards animals."

Church warden Robert Smith has witnessed the unusual service for the last 30 years.

He said: "In the past we've had horses and donkeys coming to be blessed. Last year there was a cat that miaowed in time to the hymns.

"There was a bit of a confrontation between two dogs who ended up running off out of the church grounds. It is a lot of fun and very popular.

"I don't bring an animal with me - just my wife."

The service is usually held in the grounds of the church but, due to the wet weather at the weekend, the building became a Noah's Ark for the pets of the parish.