We’re going to breeze through breakfast because this morning’s blog post topic includes two of my favorite things: Dogs and weddings.
Breakfast this morning was an unattractive but delicious smoothie.
Into the blender went:
- 1 1/2 frozen bananas
- Handful of frozen strawberries
- 1 scoop Optimum Nutrition protein powder (extreme milk chocolate)
- 1 tbsp. cocoa powder
- 1 spoonful almond butter
- 1 packet Starbucks via instant coffee
- 2 handfuls fresh spinach
- Enough almond milk to get everything moving
The packet of instant coffee made this smoothie loosely remind me of a Frappuccino.
Yum!
Dogs in Weddings
With more than one of my best friends getting married next year, my interest in the wedding pictures that pop up on Pinterest seems to have exploded overnight. Since Pinterest wasn’t around when I got married (well, no one knew about it), I’m having a little too much fun scoping out fun ideas for bridal showers, bachelorette parties and the big day.
Last night I saw a bunch of different ideas for incorporating a couple’s dog into their special day. I remember a few of you guys asking whether or not Sadie would be involved in our ceremony back when we were in the middle of planning our wedding day.
A great idea… in theory.
Sadie is the most energetic and happy little thing, but she’s also a little shy around strangers, gets stage fright and only has one speed in her repertoire (sprint).
We saw Sadie’s involvement in our wedding going like this: She is dressed in a lovely little dress which goes smoothly because she loves playing dress up. My sister walks her down the aisle in her harness, which ruins the look of her dress a bit, but is necessary so she doesn’t bound down the aisle like a crazy. Sadie spots Ryan. Goes insane. Sets off in an all-out sprint, pulling my sister down the aisle with her. Arrives in front of the pastor at Ryan’s feet. Begins high-pitched excited whining. Rolls over. Pees herself. Sees me begin to walk down the aisle. Sprints up the aisle toward me. Whines. Pees herself again. Realizes strangers are watching her and immediately wants to be held. Ruins entire ceremony.
Plus, Sadie doesn’t do well playing second fiddle to anyone. Even a bride.
Yes, that is what she wore to the brunch the day after our wedding. (You can see her running around in all her dog bride glory in our wedding video at minute 4:55.)
I’ve never attended a wedding where a dog has been involved, but I would love to see a dog flower girl or ring bearer. I think it would be adorable!
Just look!
(Photo credit: Dottie Photography)
(Photo credit: Lucky Pictures)
You just need a dog with the right temperament to handle it! (For the record, I did not find even one picture of a vizsla involved in a wedding. Pugs, on the other hand, seem quite popular in weddings.)
Question of the Morning
- Have you ever attended a wedding that incorporated a pet into the ceremony?
- Would you ever consider including your pet in your wedding day?
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I think that dogs in weddings always sounds so cute…in theory but no way would I ever do it. That day is stressful enough (in a good way but still stressful) that I can not imagine adding a dog into the mix.
I have thought about having my dog ( a 10 month old Vizsla, however I think she would be too crazy excited! I believe she’s Sadie’s Mini- ME! 🙂
I was just in a wedding with a dog! The brides brother rolled his son(her nephew) and the bride and grooms poodle mix dog in a wagon. She was calm and didn’t bark. I totally agree its the type of dog, and mine is a pug beagle mix, dubbed a puggle. And although she has the calm pug, the beagle in her makes her act just like you described your dog. AND mine is named Sadie too! Sad to say, come December she won’t be walking down the isle with me! 🙂
I have never been to a wedding with a dog but I think it would be such a cute idea. Our dog was really laid back so I think he would have done okay.
But I would worry about wedding guests. My step mom is terrified of dogs and I would wonder if it would bother other guests.
i totally just cried watching your wedding video!! so precious
My Golden Retriever, Belle, was in our wedding! We hired a dog sitter to pick her up, bring her to the ceremony, and take her back home. She was amazingly well behaved. It made for some really great wedding pictures!! 🙂
Ricky wants Reno at our wedding. I’m going to try to surprise him by having the trainer Reno will be staying with bring him for pictures after the ceremony. 🙂
awwww, i love this! he’ll love it, leah. 🙂 let me know if you need any help with the logistics!
I have never been to a wedding with an animal involved but I love the idea of it. I definitely think it would have to be a non bridezilla type person to pull it off though. I imagine it could be stressful so you would have to be a go with the flow type person……someone NOT like me, lol!!
I’m with you!! I love dogs in weddings, I think its the cutest thing I’ve ever seen. Although I’ve never seen one in real life either, I just love all the dog-weddings pictures. I’m getting married in a couple of years, and while my fiance and I don’t have a dog, I’ve thought about using my mom’s dogs because they are ADORABLE… So far everyone has shot down my idea on that 🙁
I would LOVE to have our little schnauzer in our wedding (whenever that day comes). But, I can’t help but think he would handle the ceremony somewhat similar to Sadie. Whenever he is in front of a bunch of people, he does this bark/howl that sounds sort of like a rooster crowing… so he would definitely do that at least 5 times, he would probably smell something and go pee on it, he would jump all over my dress because he wants to be held, if someone walked him down the aisle on his harness he would do this funny run/walk thing he likes to do when we go on walks and start breathing really heavy… just not good. But who knows! It would be so adorable, especially since he is stark white… a little black bowtie would be so cute on him! 🙂
PS- I can’t get your wedding video to load 🙁
oh my gosh, i just laughed out loud at the description of your dog’s bark/howl!
I think as long as you know your pup can handle it, it’s all good and they’ll always do something cute to steal a little bit of the spotlight and have people talking for years after. 😉
I totally plan to have my black lab be the ring bearer in my wedding one day!! Of course he is a bundle of energy like Sadie and I could totally see him jumping on me and getting my dress covered in mud and black dog hair, but maybe by the time I actually get engaged and married he will calm down. A girl can hope, anyway 😉
Haha I always thought I was such a freak for wanting to have my dog in my wedding (this is a hypothetical wedding as I am not engaged…), but I feel like he would need special classes beforehand…we shall see!
My little chihuahua Daisy was in my wedding she walked down the isle with my mom and brother. Daisy sat quietly during the ceremony in my brothers lap (probably shedding on his tux) . People seemed to love having her there and she behaved really well.
I love dogs in weddings! Our lab, Layla, is way too shy to have been in our wedding. However, we included her in our engagement photos and LOVE the pictures. It’s a great alternative if you have a shy or crazy pup!
I’m not a big animal person, so I wouldn’t want to (and didn’t) include one in my wedding. I think it could work for an outdoor wedding, but it’d have to be a very well-behaved dog!
Sadie in that dress is adorable! My boyfriend and I just adopted a dog, but she seems a lot like Sadie in temperament, so I’m not sure it would work for her to be included in a wedding. She gets too excited!
I have a pug and I plan on having her in my wedding! She’s very calm and will probably fall asleep during the ceremony. As long as her snoring doesn’t interrupt anything…
I think it’s such a cute idea and definitely agree a dog would probably make an adorable ring bearer or flower girl, but I also see how it could make a whole new level of complicated for the wedding. Besides, after I’m not sure I want to be following my dog around cleaning up after them in my wedding dress. As much as I would love my dog, I think they might be better off not at the wedding. (But I’d totally dress them up like you did Sadie for the morning after brunch!)
I would have loved to have our dog in our wedding (terrier mix, 30ish lbs, looks like a big jack russell) but he, too, is kind of excitable/crazy/energetic and would probably have ended up pawing my full lace dress. so noooo. we didn’t do it!
This was actually a tricky one for my husband and me – I really wanted our (well my!) dog in our wedding! She has a great temperament and I think would have done great, but we were more concerned with who would take care of her, where would she go after, etc. Seemed like one more thing to worry about, so he nixed it 🙁
I did go to a wedding where their family’s lab was at the ceremony – sitting alongside the groomsmen. They had a friend play a trumpet solo during the ceremony and the lab went NUTS howling into the air. Howling and howling. It was awesome. Made everyone laugh 🙂
LOL!!!!!!!
I just attended my friend’s wedding in Key West this June and their dog, Walter, walked my friend’s mom down the aisle!!! He’s an older guy, so he was very calm and very handsome. He had a nametag on that said “My name is Walter and I approve this union.” 🙂 It was wonderful! I wish I could post a picture!
I think it’s a cute idea with the right dog. Our two dogs do not do well off-leash (beagles will follow their noses through traffic, over a cliff, or under a wedding gown…). As a compromise, we involved them in our engagement photos and got some really cute ones that we used in our guest book at our wedding.
I’ve been following your blog and just waiting patiently for the day that I found a post where you stated that Sadie was a Vizsla – My stepdad has one her name is Lucy and I totally understand what you mean if she were to see Brian at the alter she would sprint to him all wiggly and jumping flying as high as a kite!!!! They are beautiful dogs and the reason my husband and I finally broke down and got a dog –> we got a Weimaraner though so he is just taller and bigger but essentially the same! =D
This past summer I went to a wedding where the groom and bride’s dogs participated in the wedding. Both the groom and the bride decided to have their dogs as their maid-of-honor and best man. It was a cute idea at first, but like you said both of the dogs sprinted down the isle and ruined the other bridesmaid’s dresses. In theory it was a cute idea, but I will not be including my precious pooch in my future wedding.
We didn’t rescue our dog until after we got married, so having him in our wedding wasn’t an option. He’s totally the love of our life, but I don’t think we would have included him our wedding. He’s pretty high energy and LOVES giving hugs! I think it would have been dificult for him to sit still through an entire ceremony — the family Christmas card photo was an adventure =)
Gah! Definitely did not just cry at your wedding video…..haha
Everything about it was just beautiful! You guys are so very lucky that someone did that for you 🙂 What a wonderful gift.
And I totally have to agree with how it would’ve went down if you had your dog in the wedding, she is one little spark plug of cuteness!
aww that is so cute!! haha! I don’t think my cats would like to be in my wedding… they’d probably sit with big cat eyes judging everyone hahaha
I was just looking up engagement and wedding photos with dogs on Pinterest, too!! I don’t want my dog involved in the actual wedding but I most definitely want her to be in some engagement and wedding photos.
Alex and I are getting married in October 2013 and you better believe our little shih tzu Charlee will be in the wedding. She will be walking down the aisle with Alexs’ nephew who is our ring bearer. Everyone loves her so we want her to be a part of our day =)
We had our two dogs at the time (we now have 3) in our wedding. The wedding was very small but they would have been included even if it was larger. We got married on the beach so it was only natural to have them come with us for the vacation and wedding. The only hiccup was someone didn’t close a door and one was ‘missing’ about 5 minutes before our ceremony. Luckily, the door must have only been open for a short time because the missing dog was just walking around the driveway and had not ventured far which was a surprise since she’s a beagle!
Hahaha I don’t have a dog but I Think it’s adorable when they’re in pictures like those! That said, I don’t think I’d want one in the actual ceremony.
Yeah my dog would pretty much handle it the same way! there would be lots of pee and would probably try and herd half the group lol
Our yellow lab was actually our ring dog in our wedding last November. The pictures are adorable and she was super well behaved throughout the ceremony. I made her a color with a ring pillow and a flower on it and she practically stole the show. Our venue director even thought ahead and put a bowl of water under the chair she would be sitting next too so she could have a drink. It was a light hearted ceremony so the slurping of her drinking only added to the fun.
Our beagle was the ring bearer in our wedding!
However, he didn’t actually hold the rings. My uncle (the flower “girl”) walked him down the aisle, my husband acted like he was getting the rings from our dog, and then he was walked straight out the back and stayed there until the ceremony was over. Minimal howling. It was great and so cute.
We wanted to include Milo but our venue doesn’t allow dogs (blessing in disguise probably). Our compromise is getting engagement pics with him so he can be on the save the date (I really really want him to wear a sign that says Mom and Dad are getting married). Also, in lieu of favors, we are donated to the rescue where we got him, so he’ll be involved in spirit!
donating* Oops
i love that!
I am not a dog person, so personally–and honestly, I think it’s a little weird, but that may just be me 😉
Love the breakfast smoothie! mmmmmm
I was just in a wedding where the dog carried the rings. She was really well behaved! I was outdoor though and there was a squirrel that she REALLY wanted to chase. Luckily, she waited until after the ceremony!
I love your explanation of how Sadie would’ve acted if she were in your wedding! My dog would do the same thing!! It’s such a cute idea though, especially if you are obsessed with your dog like I am!
We boarded our dogs during our wedding weekend, it was just easier. I would’ve loved to include them but it just wasn’t possible. We did have our first dog (didn’t have the second yet) in our engagement pictures. We even had the photographer take some pics of just him, they turned out so good!
Now that you did the run through of the possibility of what could happen…. I’m rethinking it! lol
Although one of our Bernese Mountain Dogs would be awesome (totally the loof) the other one is like a bucking bronco with the squeel when she sees new people. So hard – I love my dogs and want them to be a part of it! Maybe doing it the next day or day before like did would leave me feeling a bit more relaxed on the actual wedding day!
Btw: Never thought about adding a Starbucks via to my smoothie every morning. Talk about saving money on a coffee too! Thanks for the idea 🙂
-Michelle
We had our vizsla in our wedding! She did such a great job! We did have her stay and play at doggie day camp the day before and morning of so she would be super tired! She was our ring bearer!
i LOVE the pics you sent. she is adorable!
My dogs were in my wedding just 2 months ago! 🙂 They were fabulous!! I have a teacup Yorkie named Annie and my big Golden Retriever is Cornflake. Annie had a handmade custom dress on to match my bridesmaids’ color and Cornflake had a handmade bow tie on. So handsome! Since I don’t have a way to attach the picture here, I’m going to email it to you Julie and you can post it! :))
I WISH we could have incorporated our pug into our wedding! I even said to my husband at our reception that he was the only thing missing from the day! But, we had a traditional, Catholic ceremony and a dog would most definitely have been a no-no.
One of my husband’s cousins actually did a photo shoot a few weeks after her wedding with her dog. She and her husband dressed up in their wedding day attire and got photos taken with their lab. I thought that was a good idea since they couldn’t feasibly have her there on the actual wedding day.
Love Sadie’s wedding dress outfit! My friend is having both her chocolate and yellow labs in their wedding, I’ll send you pics!
yay!!
What a cute pic of the dog with the bow tie! i love his tie matches the bride’s shoes!!
I love this topic!!!!!! We talked over having Boyd our Boykin Spaniel at our wedding last June… but he’s a total train wreck!! Such a hot mess around groups of people!! By the way, we brought home our chocolate lab/Vizsla last night. I named her Pippa! I have pictures up. Those two are totally precious together and are definitely keeping me busy this morning!!
I was just married on Saturday (8/11) and we used our dog, Kona, as our flower girl. Sadie always reminds me of Kona, their extreme desire to be RIGHT next to you all the time, I was nervous that she would jump on me, or pull our poor ring bearer down the isle. But something magical happened that day, and Kona did wonderful! Literally laid down next to the groomsman the entire ceremony.
But to answer your question, I’m 100% for having dogs in a wedding, but only if you think it’s appropriate.
My friend had her pug, Eloise, in her wedding as the flower girl! Lol it was a limitless odd but fit her well
I don’t think our dogs would cut it in our wedding. The one is such a finnicky walker and I think he’d just stop mid-aisle. We actually used that picture with the “Love” sign around the dog’s neck as inspiration for our save the date. Our dog was in the foreground with a “Save the Date” sign around his neck and we were kissing in the background. It was such a hit!!
Ah. My old pup was like that. He was very senior, but if the mood struck he had no problem just stopping whenever it behooved him. Often in the middle of a crosswalk or public driveway.