Puppies at Weddings: Five Things That Make the Day Easier

A puppy at your wedding is one of the best ideas you'll ever have.

It also takes more planning than a grown dog. Puppies tire faster, need more sleep, and haven't yet learnt how to cope with a room full of strangers. None of that means they can't be there. It just means the day needs building around them a little more carefully.

Here are five things we've learnt.

Nick Williams Photographer

1. Give puppies at weddings time to explore

Young dogs need time to take in a new place at their own pace, and the ceremony area especially. Let them sniff the flowers, look at the decorations, and meet whoever is conducting the ceremony.

This can't be rushed, which is why we arrive at least an hour before the ceremony. If you can visit the venue with your puppy a few times beforehand, even better. Familiarity does a lot of the work for you.

Noah Werth Photo

2. Sleep, and then more sleep

Puppies need a great deal of sleep. It matters for their growth, their development and their behaviour, and an overtired puppy is not what you want at your wedding.

Tired puppies bite. They hang off dresses, launch at guests and generally turn into little land sharks. Building proper rest and quiet time into the day is the single most useful thing you can do, and it's rarely the thing couples plan for.

3. Someone whose only job is the puppy

A dedicated chaperone means your puppy's needs are met all day and all evening, by someone who isn't trying to enjoy the wedding at the same time.

That last part matters more than it sounds. Your guests want to hear your vows, watch you cut the cake and be there for the first dance. They want to eat their meal and catch up with people they haven't seen in years. Nobody who wants to do all that can also be watching a puppy closely enough to notice when they're getting anxious, or spot that they need the toilet, or make sure they actually nap.

So the routine slips, the early signs get missed, and you end up with an overtired puppy and, sooner or later, an accident somewhere inconvenient.

4. Keep to their routine

Stick to their normal day as closely as you can: nap times, feeds, play. The more familiar the rhythm, the more settled they'll be in surroundings that are anything but.

Bring their own things too. Favourite toys, their bed, their blanket, their usual bowl. A Kong or a puzzle feeder is worth its weight, because it occupies them and feeds them at the same time.

5. Be ready to change the plan

This is the one couples find hardest to hear. Your puppy may not manage everything you've imagined for the day.

We talk this through with you well beforehand, so it isn't a surprise on the morning. There are usually alternatives that work just as well, and we always have a plan for what happens if your puppy gets overwhelmed or too noisy.

After years of doing this, we've got a good sense of what dogs enjoy at weddings and what they don't. We'd always rather talk it through with you early than have you hoping for something that was never going to be comfortable for them.

Yeah Mike Photo

Planning a wedding with a puppy? We'd love to hear about them. Get in touch and we'll arrange a video call to talk it through.