Hearts Melt as Bride Makes Special Stop to See Dog in Her Wedding Dress

A bride taking a detour to "show her dog her wedding dress," according to the wedding photographer, is delighting people online.

In a post to Reddit's Made Me Smile forum, user Jeff Beck (u/JephriB) shared a snap from a wedding he'd recently shot. The picture shows bride Sarah Wilkinson crouched on the ground—in full wedding attire—with her goldendoodle Walter.

Wilkinson wanted at least one shot of her dog while she was in her wedding gown, so the two drove 10 minutes to the sitter's house. "I absolutely was not going to miss that moment," Beck, 37, told Newsweek. "It was just so sweet that she wanted her dog to see her dress."

The shot of the bride and dog quickly went viral, receiving over 16,000 upvotes.

"It was a unique, once in a lifetime opportunity," Wilkinson, 42, told Newsweek. "The photographer found out where we were going and he was all in. Best photographer ever."

A recent survey by Amazon Handmade found that almost two-thirds of people wanted to include their dog in their wedding. In a poll of 2,000 dog owners, 60 percent knew someone who had included their dog in the wedding party, with the top roles including ring bearers (50 percent), flower girls (17 percent) and page boys (13 percent).

Wilkinson adopted the 6-year-old goldendoodle in June 2020 and describes him as her "adventure buddy."

Mutual friends introduced the bride to Neil Wilkinson, 45, in September 2022. After a whirlwind romance, the pair got married two weeks ago at the Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple in South Jordan, Utah.

After a simple ceremony, the guests were heading to the reception when Wilkinson decided she needed a photo with her fur baby.

"My friend Nicole was watching my dog," she said. "She owns Walter's best friend, Sully. Considering I rented my dress and only had it for a short time, I knew it was now or never."

She later clarified that she didn't specifically want to show Walter her dress, as he "doesn't really care what I'm wearing."

"I could see the confusion as the photographer and I talked," she said.

Wedding dress or not, Walter was thrilled to see his owner. He gave Wilkinson a "huge grin" and a kiss as she bent down to say hello.

"It's rare for him to kiss, he just doesn't do it," she said. "It took me so off guard that it made me cry."

Beck is a wildlife and landscape photographer, and the Wilkinson wedding was the third ceremony he has captured. He said, "I hope that won't be the last bride and dog photo shoot I do."

The moment moved Reddit users, with mcs_987654321 writing, "What a wonderful shot."

"Worth every penny they paid you," agreed DreadPirateLink. "Beautiful memory that they'll have the rest of their days," wrote the_brave_mosquito.

"True happiness shines through," commented melbo15.

"My eyes. I am sobbing like a baby. What is wrong with me?!?!" said LaylaBird65.

While midget22xp dubbed the photo: "The most heartwarming picture I've seen today."

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