Spotted: Dogs in Weddings
Dogs in weddings? YES! I don’t have to tell you guys how important these little balls of fur are, those lucky enough to be a dog’s best friend already know. So, it’s kind of a no-brainer that they should have a starring role in their BFFs’ weddings, right? A starring role and maybe even a custom-made tux… I’m just sayin’.
My friend Carolyn, a talented wedding and event planner, recently mentioned that she’d been seeing more and more dogs in weddings. Of course, I had to ask if she had any photos and — surprise — she had a ton! I’ve shared a few of my favorite here, but check out The Special Day to see if you can spot any more “wedding day dogs”!
Aaaaand one more of this guy, because he just looks so dapper in that bow tie!
Did you or would you have a dog in your wedding? Have you ever been to a wedding where a dog participated in some way? What did you think?
Image credits — Photo 1 and 6: Apertura Photography Photo 2: Jules Bianchi Photo 3 and 7: Jose Villa Photo 4: Chenin Boutwell Photo 5: Victor Sizemore
What a beautiful collection of photos. We had a wedding planner pal give us some advice on how to involve your dog in your wedding. Take a look if you get a moment here: http://www.barkarama.co.uk/home/2012/04/10/162-the-bride-and-grrrrrrr-oom-involving-your-dog-in-the-big-day-
Our wedding is in Sept. 2013 and I would love to include our beagle in the ceremony, but I’m worried about his behavior and think he may be distracting. I’d be curious to hear from others who have had their dogs included; was there any special training involved? In general, he’s well-behaved, but in a new environment like that, with lots of people around, I think he might get nervous.
Tamara – this is always the concern that the dogs would not behave, get too excited & pee, jump on the bride, etc… but I have to say… all of the doggies end up doing very well. It’s like they know that this is a very special day for their best friends/mommy/daddy. Funny thing is that the dogs are much more predictable than children! You just need to have someone in charge of taking care of your dog since you will obviously be pre-occupied… for walking, going to the bathroom, feeding, making sure plenty of water… and that person should be someone your dog is familiar with, or can at least get familiar with.
My husband and I got married this past march and our two pugs were in the wedding. Roxy was the Flower Pug and Miles, the Ring Pug (escorted down the aisle by my brother and sister-in-law). The wedding took place inside a huge mansion and both puggies were so well-behaved! Granted, both dogs made some noise during the ceremony but hey, they’re dogs and everyone (especially my husband and I) found them adorable. Going in, I was worried about what to do with the pugs during the reception but our wedding coordinator was so sweet and set up the pugs in the bridal suite, where they had room and freedom to run around, eat, sleep and do their business if necessary. A married couple of ours was staying with us since they were visiting from out-of-town and offered to bring the pugs with them to the ceremony and then take them back home and dog-sit so my husband and I could enjoy our wedding night.
For those planning on including their furry ones in the wedding, I’d suggest assigning someone you trust to baby-sit the dogs during the ceremony and reception, as well as bring essentials like pee pads (if you’re going to be inside), water bowl, food, blanket and toys so the dogs are comfortable. Due to the fact our two dogs were together, they were perfectly fine hanging out in the bridal suite by themselves. Didn’t hurt that my husband and I snuck back there several times to play with them, even my wedding coordinator couldn’t get enough of them!
All in all, including your dogs in the wedding can go well as long as you plan ahead and ask people to help you out with transporting them to and from the ceremony/reception and have all your basis covered when making sure you dog is well taken care of so you can enjoy your wedding.
There was no way we were gonna have our wedding without our dog Teddy included. He’s part of our family and where ever we had our wedding, he had to be allowed in and be included. We were fortunate enough to have our wedding on a yacht in Marina del Rey. FantaSea Yachts were very accommodating and allowed Teddy to be part of the celebration. This link has some of the pictures from our engagement photos. Enjoy! http://blog.vinceandcarla.com/engagement/santa-monica-and-lacma-engagement-session-james-dalene/
Awesome post! We are planning our wedding for Sept 7, 2013 now and fighting with my future mother in law about the dogs being involved. I shall win this battle and my blue nose pitbull will be walking me down the aisle with my daddy in a tux!