Chit Chat

Dogs at the wedding

I’m thinking about having my dog at my wedding, but I’m not sure if it’s a good idea. Has anyone had their dog there? How did it go? I want her to be part of the day, but I’m worried about how she’ll behave and if I need to take extra steps to make sure everything goes smoothly. Any tips or advice?

Re: Dogs at the wedding

  • Don't bring your dog to the wedding. You could put a picture of you with your dog somewhere in the decor, but that's as far as I would go.

    Regardless of how well your dog is trained, your wedding is going to be a situation with lots of noise, lots of unfamiliar people (possibly including people with allergies or who otherwise aren't good around dogs), and where you don't want your dog to urinate or defecate in the wrong places, jump on, scratch, sniff, lick, or otherwise cause damage to other people or property at the wedding - especially if it is at a house of worship or other venue where dogs are either not normally allowed or is just not a good setup, such as a conservative club. Even if your wedding is in your backyard, it may be more than your dog can handle. And your dog still needs to be fed, walked, and otherwise cared for on its normal schedule, which again might not be possible or practical at your wedding.

    So I suggest making other arrangements for your dog while you are at the wedding and reception, and picking the dog up later.

  • My dog is my daughter, but I wouldn't bring her to my wedding either. I would have had her at the house while we were getting ready and had some special photos with her before the ceremony, but then left her at home where she's safe and comfortable. 

    At the very most, you could have your dog in an outdoor ceremony, but even then you need to make arrangements for someone to bring her home and secure her. This isn't something you can ask a guest to do; you'd need to pay a dog walker or pet sitter that she already knows to handle this. You are not going to want to spend the entire reception making sure she's safe and comfortable, and you can't ask someone else to do it. Even the most well-behaved, relaxed dog is going to be stressed to be in a strange place with so many humans around, especially when your attention is not on her. 
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