Puppy love, a ‘tail’ of romance

As Geoffrey and Allison Grizzel tied the knot along the water’s edge of Seven Mile Beach earlier this month, the couple said their “I dos” and sealed it with a kiss in front of a backdrop of a fleeting rainbow created by distant showers on the horizon. The moment, which was witnessed by a handful of close friends and family, was made even more special, thanks to the inclusion of puppy bouquets.

“We saw the idea online and thought to ourselves, this would be so awesome,” said Allison. “The following day we were on the beach and saw Taura Ebanks from the Humane Society with puppies, and thought this was destiny, we had to do it.”

Allison’s bridal party consisted of five women, who were each given a puppy in a basket to walk down the sandy aisle to the wedding arch. There were plenty of surprised and delighted ‘awws’ from the guests, who were not told about the puppies beforehand.

1 of 5

“Geoff and I adopted our dog and cats from the Cayman Islands Humane Society,” said Allison. “So, part of the reason we included the puppies in the wedding was to give them some exposure, with the hopes that someone might see the puppies and adopt them.”

Ebanks, who is affiliated with the Humane Society, worked with non-profit charity One Dog at a Time which supplied the puppies for the day’s celebrations.

“The puppies were just one small part of Alison and Geoff’s special day, and using their day of joy to help the less fortunate is one of the most generous things anyone can do,” said Ebanks. “What we hope is that someone will see the puppies and provide a loving, nurturing home for them.”

Ebanks said the puppies are from recent batches of an increasing number of new litters that continue to put pressure on the diminishing resources at the shelter.

“We hope that more puppies and kittens will be featured in more weddings and special events,” she said. “However, we don’t just want people to use them for their adorableness, instead we need people to help raise awareness and ultimately find these animals new homes.”

To adopt one of the puppies featured in this story contact One Dog at a Time.

All pictures were provided courtesy of Mr & Mrs Grizzel and Jenna Leigh Photography.