Our founder, Ilana, got married back in October. Our other founder, Kelly, was the Maid Of Honor. What an incredible experience it was to be on the other side of the wedding day & see what it’s like for YOU, our clients!
Her pup, Cooper (1/3 of our FairyTail logo!) is a sweet but nervous rescue pup. Ilana almost didn’t have him in the ceremony. After some convincing from our FairyTail team she decided to give it a shot, and just wait until you see how he did.
Read what the Bride (our co-founder, Ilana!) had to say about including Cooper in the wedding day below!
Why did you include your dog in your wedding?
OF COURSE Cooper was going to be in our wedding. (How weird would it have been if we didn’t include him ha!) We started this whole company because we understand how important it is to have your furry best friend there & taken care of on such a special day. He truly is our baby & I couldn’t imagine our wedding day without him.
What is the story of how your dog became a part of the family?
Actually, Kelly and I adopted Cooper & his brother Grizzie when we were in college.. We saw their little faces on an online rescue site & couldn’t help ourselves. We drove out to this shelter in the middle of nowhere & took them home right away. I was dating my [now] husband at the time, so we have had this handsome pup since he was just an 8 lb puppy!
Did you incorporate your dog into any other details on your wedding day?
Cooper’s role on our wedding day was walking down the aisle with Kelly, and also greeting some of his friends & family prior to the ceremony. We then included him in most of our photos after the ceremony.
For details - we made a cake topper with the two of us & Cooper on it! He even had a table with donut toys (we had a brunch wedding) as favors for all of our guest’s pups. We also made a donation “from Cooper” in all of guests honors (rather than doing favors) to Suncoast Animal League.
All dogs are the best dogs, but tell us something that makes your dog special?
Cooper is very special. He has LOTS of quirks & silly mannerisms. He really is my best friend & he is our whole world!
Because of his anxious personality, we were a little nervous about including him in our big day. It was such a relief knowing I could count on our FairyTail team to ensure he had the best day ever, too.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with us about your dog/wedding day?
Surprisingly, I almost didn’t have Cooper in the ceremony! While of course I wanted him there, Cooper is quite the anxious rescue dog. He doesn’t typically do well in new environments or around crowds of people. While I knew we would include him in photos, the ceremony just seemed out of the question. After some convincing from the team here at FairyTail, we decided to give it a shot.
.
Cooper’s handler took him for a LONG adventure prior to the ceremony, and even practiced walking down the aisle so he could get his sniffs in. I thought for sure that once he made it down the aisle, he would need to be taken away immediately. Just look at the photo below to see this good boy who, instead, LAID DOWN ON MY TRAIN & sat quietly for the duration of the ceremony (aside from one perfectly timed bark during vows!)
Afterwards, I couldn’t stop talking about how perfect he was & how it never could have happened without the help of our company. What an incredible experience to truly see the value of the service we are able to provide to our couples & their pets on such a special day!
Venue // The Godfrey Hotel & Cabanas
Planner // Bourbon & Blush Events
Photographer // Marc Edwards Photographs
Videographer //https://www.radredcreative.com/
Florist // Florist Fire Design House
Hair & Makeup // Angelica Fulchino
Cake // The Girl With The Whisk Tattoo
Donuts // Little Donut House
Live Band & Entertainment // DeLeon Entertainment
Rentals & Linens // Kate Ryan Event Rentals
A portion of this FairyTail Wedding was donated to // Suncoast Animal League
Have questions? Want to include you pet in your wedding day?
Contact us & let us help!
![[GIVEAWAY!] FairyTail Pet Care Can Be Your Dog's Plus-One](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5512f1e0e4b01593abb130e7/1724444675530-7HHUIROOSAM02SLYQJR1/vhsU-conv-attach-230225938.jpeg)
As the leaders in the wedding pet care industry, we want to offer our advice on how to make your furry friends a part of your big day—even during hurricane season.