My Experience Hiring a Dog Coordinator for Our Wedding
The Backstory
We got Charlie a month before we got engaged and we were obviously quickly obsessed with him. We started looking at venues and finally chose Willowdale Estate in Topsfield, MA. Fast forward 2 months where we were doing a styled engagement shoot and met Lauren Dobish (our FANTASTIC wedding photographer) and Danielle Marchessault (a certified dog trainer and wedding planning pet service).
Danielle began working her magic on Charlie. She would position him for the photos, coordinate him with Lauren for the shot, get him to actually look at the camera, and watch him while Tim and I took photos together. I was so impressed with Danielle and then she said she helps with coordinating your dog to be in your wedding and that’s when I was like “what?” I didn’t even know this was an option or a thing! I obviously googled her further when I got home and her reviews were glowing. I immediately booked her for our wedding. THANKFULLY, our wedding venue allowed dogs, which I didn’t even know upon booking so it was a great surprise!
Details
I spoke with Danielle prior to wedding day to figure out a wedding day timeline for Charlie of when he would arrive and leave. We boarded Charlie for 2 nights at Red Dog Pet Resort in Saugus (which I highly recommend). They were very accommodating and all 3 of our family dogs stayed in one suite there. We knew we wanted them boarded here from great reviews and the close proximity to our venue. If you do not have reliable boarding Danielle can find you sitters for your day. I also knew I wanted our florist to make a floral collar for Charlie but if you don’t have ideas she also can provide wedding day outfit options for your dog too.
On the day of Danielle was phenomenal. We did a first look so she picked Charlie up from Red Dog Pet Resort and brought him to our venue right after our first look. Our venue did not allow dogs after the ceremony so all our photos with Charlie were before. She was there for our first look with Charlie and with all other photos. She even captured candid videos, which I wasn’t expecting but so appreciated!
I was TERRIFIED Charlie would be so horribly behaved walking down the aisle. Danielle did such a wonderful job adequately tiring him out before his big debut. Charlie walked down the aisle like a pro with my Maid of Honor and Danielle immediately escorted him out. I wanted him removed before the ceremony started so he wouldn’t ruin my moment with his adorable but distracting happy screams. She provided so many treats, love, and then brought him back to Red Dog Pet Resort. It was about 2.5 hours total we hired her for and it was the perfect amount of time for us.
I truly could not imagine my wedding day without Charlie so I was SO pleased to have found For The Love of Paws. If you are a bride and dog mom I would absolutely recommend her for your wedding day or engagement shoots! She also services more than just the New England area so reach out to her to ask. Her instagram is @fortheloveofpawsss If you have further questions please feel free to DM me!
-Jess & Charlie 🍷🐾