10 Heartfelt Wedding Readings About Man's BFF

If you’re a dog lover who’s about to tie the knot, then you know how important it is for your partner-to-be to love your pet (or if you’re in my house, pets) just as much as they love you — especially if you’re already thinking of creative ways to include your dog in your wedding ceremony. And one great way to do that (particularly if beloved Lassie can’t quite be trusted not to gnaw on the rings) is by selecting wedding readings about your dog. Sure, dog-inspired wedding readings might sound a little offbeat, but from one animal-lover to another: my fur babies have taught me everything I ever needed to know about love, and a whole lot more too.

After all, you, the love of your life, and your four-legged partner(s)-in-crime are all building a brand new family, together — plus, every time Fido takes up your entire bed during a thunderstorm, you’ll be able to call upon those wedding readings for dog lovers as a reminder of why you love the little rascal in the first place. Check out these 10 wedding readings about dogs — because your spouse should love your four-legged best friend just as much as you do.

1. Love makes messes.Love leaves you little surprises here and there.Love needs lots of cleaning up after.Sometimes you just want to get love fixed.Sometimes you want to roll up a piece of newspaperand swat love on the nose,not so much to cause pain,just to let love know: Don’t you ever do that again!… But love makes you meet people wherever you go.People who have nothing in common but lovestop and talk to each other on the street.Throw things away and love will bring them back,again, and again, and again.But most of all, love needs love, lots of it.And in return, love loves you and never stops.

— Taylor Mali, How Falling in Love is like Owning a Dog

2. A person can learn a lot from a dog, even a loopy one like ours. Marley taught me about living each day with unbridled exuberance and joy, about seizing the moment and following your heart. He taught me to appreciate the simple things ― a walk in the woods, a fresh snowfall, a nap in a shaft of winter sunlight. And as he grew old and achy, he taught me about optimism in the face of adversity. Mostly, he taught me about friendship and selflessness and, above all else, unwavering loyalty.

― John Grogan, Marley and Me: Life and Love With the World's Worst Dog

3. Dogs do speak, but only to those who know how to listen.

― Orhan Pamuk, My Name is Red

4. No matter how close we are to another person, few human relationships are as free from strife, disagreement, and frustration as is the relationship you have with a good dog. Few human beings give of themselves to another as a dog gives of itself. I also suspect that we cherish dogs because their unblemished souls make us wish ― consciously or unconsciously ― that we were as innocent as they are, and make us yearn for a place where innocence is universal and where the meanness, the betrayals, and the cruelties of this world are unknown.

― Dean Koontz, A Big Little Life: A Memoir of a Joyful Dog

5. Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joy ride together. Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure ecstasy.When loved ones come home always run to greet them.When you want treats, practice obedience.Let others know when they've invaded your territory.Take naps together and stretch before rising.Run, romp, and play daily.Be loyal.If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gently.Thrive on the attention and let people touch you.Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.When you’re happy, dance around and wag your entire body.No matter how often you’re scolded, don’t buy into the guilt thing and pout...Run right back and make friends.Delight in the simple joy of a long walk together.Love each other unconditionally.

— Anonymous, All I Need To Know About Life I Learned From My Dog

6. I like dogs. You always know what a dog is thinking. It has four moods. Happy, sad, cross, and concentrating. Also, dogs are faithful and they do not tell lies because they cannot talk.

― Mark Haddon, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

7. I once knew a woman who liked to imagine love in the guise of a sturdy dog, one that would always chase down the stick after it was thrown and return with his ears flopping around happily. Completely loyal, completely unconditional. And I laughed at her, because even I knew that love is not like that. Love is a delicate thing that needs to be cosseted and protected. Love is not robust and love is not unyeilding. Love can crumble under a few harsh words, or be tossed away with a handful of careless actions. Love isn't a steadfast dog at all; love is more like a pygmy mouse lemur. Yes, that's exactly what love is: a tiny, jittery primate with eyes that are permanently peeled open in fear.

— Andrew Davidson, The Gargoyle

8. The blackbird loves the earthwormThe adder loves the sunThe polar bear an icebergThe elephant a bunThe trout enjoys the riverThe whale enjoys the seaAnd dogs love most an old lamppostBut you're my cup of tea.

— WH Auden, Foxtrot from a Play

9. I think we are drawn to dogs because they are the uninhibited creatures we might be if we weren’t certain we knew better. They fight for honor at the first challenge, make love with no moral restraint, and they do not for all their marvelous instincts appear to know about death. Being such wonderfully uncomplicated beings, they need us to do their worrying.

— George Bird Evans, Troubles with Bird Dogs

10. The conclusion I have reached is that, above all, dogs are witnesses. They are allowed access to our most private moments. They are there when we think we are alone. Think of what they could tell us. They sit on the laps of presidents. They see acts of love and violence, quarrels and feuds, and the secret play of children. If they could tell us everything they have seen, all of the gaps of our lives would stitch themselves together.

― Carolyn Parkhurst, The Dogs of Babel

Images: Andrew Branch, Priscilla Westra, Alvin Balemesa, Nathália Bariani, Andrew Branch, nomao saeki, Vladimir Kudinov/Unsplash(6)