Our Own FairyTail Wedding - Cooper At The Godfrey Hotel & Cabanas - Tampa, FL
One of our co-founders got married & included her dog in their special day. 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.
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!
Harmony Gardens Wedding with Beau - Orlando, FL
Beau, the beagle, had a whole lot of energy on his parent's wedding day & while he is typically an anxious pup, he was in his element all day with the biggest smile!
Beau is a beagle full of energy! He had us sniffing every inch of the venue! You would never know Beau was typically a nervous guy & easily startled by loud noises or strangers because he was in his element, exploring around all day.
Read what the Bride had to say about including Beau in the wedding day below!
Why did you include your dog in your wedding?
Because he is our baby! Beau was a part of Austin's proposal so it was only fitting for him to be our ring bearer.
Plus, I wouldn't have known what to do with myself if he wasn't with us on our big day...he helped make it happen! And honestly how can you resist that big smile and floppy ears wearing a tuxedo? You just can't.
What is the story of how your dog became a part of the family?
Austin and I had been wanting a puppy forever.
We had been looking for a beagle puppy online for months. We even had a puppy stocking with a "B" on it for Christmas before we had him. Finally, Austin's aunt found a litter of beagle puppies at a yard sale right around the time we would be visiting for Christmas. It was love at first sight! We adopted Beau and took him home with us that Christmas from South Carolina.
Did you incorporate your dog into any other details on your wedding day?
As ring bearer, Beau was listed in our ceremony program -- full name, of course -- Beau Copper Spencer.
He also had his own favors for our guests' puppies that stayed home. He helped me make homemade peanut butter bacon puppy treats (his favorite) and put them in the cutest little favor boxes signed from Beau. He was a very good taste tester and gave the treats 2 paws up.
All dogs are the best dogs, but tell us something that makes your dog special?
Beau is a little human! He has such an amazing, big personality. He sleeps like a human, he snores like a human, he smiles, he talks, he snuggles and gives the best puppy hugs and kisses.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with us about your dog?
Beau is a skiddish, fearful little guy after a couple bad experiences that caused him to develop a fear of loud noises, large crowds, unknown vehicles, etc.
Austin and I were very nervous about how he would handle the atmosphere of a wedding. Being in a new place, with new people, and not knowing what's going on -- I was so worried! But thanks to Ilana and Alexis, he was absolutely perfect.
He got plenty of play time and exercise, plenty of love and attention, and most of all, he had a big smile walking down the aisle and posed like the perfect little gentleman for our photos. He even got in the Cinderella Carriage!
Thank you so much FairyTail Pet Care -- I have nothing but praise for your amazing work.
Venue // Harmony Gardens
Planner // Reve Events
Photographer // Nick + Lauren Photography
A portion of this FairyTail Wedding was donated to // PetSINC of Columbia
When it comes to actually carrying the wedding rings, we have an important recommendation—let’s leave the real rings to the humans!