10 Best Ways to Include Your Shih Tzu on Your Wedding Day

Shih Tzu on Your Wedding Day

How wonderful is it to be surrounded by all your loved ones on your wedding day--including your beloved fur-baby?

In a perfect world, every wedding celebration would have the couple's pet, donned in a delightfully cute miniature formal outfit, accompanying them up the aisle. Still, unfortunately, reality bites and this endeavor is not always practical.

Nevertheless, there are still a lot of creative ways to include your dog in your wedding, such as allowing him to make a cameo appearance or celebrating him in photos of your invitations, save the date, and other wedding paraphernalia.

Pets at weddings pose a lot of issues, so couples need to keep their (and their coordinator's) creative juices flowing about how to include their furry friends in their once-in-a-lifetime big day.

Now, before you get drunk with the idea of your Shih Tzu ring bearer, start by envisioning your pets into the design of your wedding venue.

**Ivory Fyre **offers a photo-realistic, virtual wedding design so that the brides and grooms can see their venue set-up — with their fur-baby, of course, before the actual wedding day, a great example is above, of the 3D VIRTUAL Wedding set up featuring the couples Shih Tzu.

Having your dog become part of your wedding entourage is indeed a major challenge, but we're here to help you out! We have put together a list of ideas for Shih Tzu owners to have your cuddly sidekick participate in your wedding. Ready to see some pawsome photos of Shih Tzus at weddings?! Let's dig in!

1. Mention Them in the Ceremony

Start thinking honestly about your dog's personality and temperament. Is he happy to meet and greet everyone and all of you? Does he have at least a couple of commands nailed down, particularly important ones like "down," "stay," and "sit"?

Does the sight of a crowd make him whirl in a frenzy? Or is he more reserved, shyer, or frightened by strangers? It is important to know what your dog will or will not be enjoying it. Dogs with anxiety or socialization issues are likely to RSVP "no."

Don't worry, though, because you can still include them in your day! One of the simplest ways to pay tribute to your beloved pet is to mention them at your ceremony, either in your vows or by dedicating a special animal poem to them. You could also save a seat for them in front of you with a framed photo. That way, they're still with you in spirit during your big day!

2.  Have Them Made into a Cardboard Cutout

Our favourite thing about this idea is that your pet will still be able to appear in your wedding portraits (some of them!). You can find a lot of sellers offering custom Amazon cutouts, but a local printer could also do it for you.

3. Include Him or Her in Your Stationery

Actually, there are dozens of ways to get your Shih Tzu involved in your wedding day: through a wallpaper plan for your Save the Dates; by having their fuzzy faces to your invitations; or by printing an illustration on menus, signs, napkins or brown paper doggie bags (get it? LOL) if you have a candy table.

You can also put your dog's thousands of photos to use by making them into table numbers. Your guests are going to love seeing them too!

4. Incorporate Them into Your Cake

Gone are the days when you were expected to stick to pint-sized brides and grooms at the top of the cake, so feel free to use your pet's sugary figure instead. This gives your multi-tiered wedding cake a unique touch and give your fluffy friend a little face time at the wedding, too.

You could ask your baker to make your Shih Tzu cake topper into hard icing, or order on Etsy to make it in clay or wood. We've seen a lot of cool styles where the pets are climbing up the tier or looking out from under the icing. 

5. Include Them in Your Photos

Your wedding album will be packed with photos of you, your family, and your friends. But someone's missing, huh? It might be your pet (after all, he/she's family, too).

The simplest way to do this is probably to include photos of your pets in charming photo displays telling your wife or husband's love story, or in free-standing frames dotted throughout the reception area.

Ensure that the photographer you choose has the experience of photographing animals and that he knows what you expect.

6. Wedding Greeters

If your dog loves people — and if your guests love dogs — you can also assign the role of a wedding greeter to your dog! Have a friend walk your dog around the wedding area as people find their seats.

NOTE: This role is best suited to more casual weddings.

7. Have Your Shih Tzu Escort Your Flower Girl

Your Shih Tzu, of course, can't sprinkle flowers down the aisle before you walk down on it. Nevertheless, if your dog is child-friendly, you could have him or her carry a light container of flower petals with your flower girl walking beside him or her and scattering a sweet set of petals with each step.

8. Be the Ring Bearer

If you do not have a baby cousin to carry the new bands down the aisle, bring your dog to your wedding ceremony. Get your furbaby to walk down the aisle with your wedding rings attached to his collar. This is sure to get the guest aww-ing.

9. Bouquet Replacement

Here is a unique and adorable way to include your pet on your big day: take him or her as you walk down the aisle! Of course, you are going to need to make sure that your furry friend is comfortable playing the role of a bouquet.

10. Use Dog-themed Accessories

You can be as subtle or as detailed as you like with pet-themed wedding accessories! Use dog-themed accessories, like Shih Tzu cookies for party favors or paw-print confetti. The possibilities are endless!