These days, nothing is really off limits in the world of unconventional weddings. The fun, the quirky, the sentimental, and the eyebrow-raising can all be found at today’s ceremonies.

We’ve seen cotton candy bouquets, guests who wear their wedding dresses, animal ringbearers, and cake-less receptions. There were also bridal gowns set ablaze. Of late, there’s another new tradition gaining attention for the big day: puppies.

When Samantha Clark of Iowa was planning her wedding, she knew she wanted to include her three dogs. But the dog lover was inspired by Pinterest and wanted to go with the novel idea to use rescue puppies in place of bridesmaids’ bouquets.

The 23-year-old bride reached out to a local shelter to find out if they would be willing to participate. AHeinz57 Pet Rescue and Transport was more than happy to accommodate Clark’s request, as the animal rescue had recently traveled to Texas following Hurricane Harvey to pick up some animals in need. The organization took in nearly 100 dogs and 5 cats affected by the hurricane.

On Clark’s end, she thought it would take a lot of convincing to get her bridesmaids to go along with the idea, but once they saw the pups, they were all in. Amy Heinz, owner of the shelter, told the Des Moines Register she thought the wedding addition was “a really sweet way to bring awareness to rescue dogs.”

Six Chiweenies – a mix of chihuahua and dachshund – took part in the ceremony, carried down the aisle in the arms of each bridesmaid. They were only about 2 months old and their foster mom attended the ceremony as well. Too cute!

If that wasn’t sweet enough, the bride and groom also had AHeinz57 set up a booth at the wedding. Guests were eager to volunteer and donate to the “dollar dance.” All the proceeds given at the wedding were donated to the organization.

After the adorable pictures from the wedding went viral, the rescue group was inundated with adoption applications. And if you were wondering if they had any accidents during the procession, nope, everything went off without any hiccups.

Clark’s family told Inside Edition that she is such a huge animal lover that having puppies in her wedding was very much her character. It just made her big day feel extra special.

The trend of swapping flower bouquets out for puppies has slowly been capturing attention, and brides are partnering up with pet adoption groups to work them into their ceremonies. In cases where orphaned dogs aren’t part of the wedding, there are other ways couples raise awareness.

Some just ask for donations to pet rescue charities in lieu of gifts, while others link to an organization on their wedding website. If you love puppies but don’t want them walking down the aisle, you can advocate for them in a different way.

Learn more about Samantha and Kendel’s big day and their puppy “bouquets” by watching the video from Inside Edition below. It’s hard not to fall in love with them.

Are you on board with using puppies as replacements for bouquets? How do you like these wedding photos? Would you do the same for your wedding?