Cape Town – Their eyes locked in the lift and it was love at first sight.
Suki, a mixed-breed “Labrador lady”, and Joey, a chocolate-and-white border collie, tied the knot this week in a ceremony at Superwoof Dog Hotel, Foreshore.
“It was literally impossible to separate the two after their first meeting and their owners even started coinciding their daycare meetings so they could be together," said Bianca Couch, general manager at Superwoof Hotel.
“After some barks and a lick, the ceremony concluded and the honeymoon started immediately with the newly-weds enjoying a splash in the pool and a glass of ‘champaws’.”
Joey’s owner, Candice Bull, said she began taking him to Superwoof earlier this year because he needed exercise.
“He doesn’t give much attention to dogs unless there’s a ball, in which case it’s game on. When I collected Joey a couple of weeks ago, it was noticeable how he engaged with a ‘blonde’ dog we shared the lift with. It was adorable; gentle licks and sniffs quite out of character for Joey,” said Bull.
She said it was almost as if they knew each other before.
“The idea of the wedding seemed crazy, but the world is kind of nuts right now anyway, right? It was just so cool - two dogs, Table Mountain in the background along with 'champaws' and a bouquet - great story during lockdown and it really made everyone who came to watch smile. It even beats some of the human weddings I’ve been to,” added Bull.
Talli Pachter, Suki’s owner, adopted her from Oscars Arc in May and started bringing her to Superwoof Dog Hotel and Daycare because she needed to be entertained during the day.
“A little shy, she definitely needed some interaction with other dogs too. It was on the second visit when Suki and I shared the lift with Joey that she came out of her shell. By the time we reached the ground floor, Suki was a different dog,” said Pachter.
“Timed visits between myself and Candice to the hotel enabled the two dogs to get to know each other better and after a few weeks, we decided that lockdown was the perfect time to give the dogs their day amid all the humans having to do their social distancing.”
The dogs will share the hotel’s honeymoon suite and co-ordinated beach runs will ensure the new couple enjoy their “Yappily Ever After”. Suki has been sterilised, so there are no pups on the way, said Pachter.
Weekend Argus