A bride wasn't about to get married without her dog in attendance.
A Chicago bride wasn't about to walk down the aisle without the four-legged love of her life.
So Briana Schaefer tied a wreath of roses around the neck of her dog, Norah, and transformed the golden retriever into a flower girl.
"She's just part of the family," Schaefer told InsideEdition.com. Her close friends and family just assumed Norah would be part of the nuptials, she said. "I treat her like a daughter," she said.
The 4-year-old pup stole the show as she wagged her way to the altar, strutting her freshly brushed ginger-colored coat.
"Everyone thought it was cute," she said. "She goes everywhere with me."
And after Schaefer posted photos of her wedding online, a whole lot of other people that it was cute, too. Media outlets began calling, anxious to talk to her about the furry flower girl.
"She's a really, really mellow dog," Schaefer said. "She barks like twice a year."
Norah is also a certified therapy dog and does volunteer work with Schaefer for a local organization.
She has a repertoire of tricks, including "sit," "paw," "roll over" and "Are you shy?" which will lead Norah to put a paw over her nose.
Norah executed her duties without a glitch, or an accident, and laid on the floor as Briana and Kevin exchanged vows.
In their wedding photos, Norah looks directly into the camera.
"The dog was absolutely pure perfection," said photographer Lina Valentino. "We would tell her to sit, and she sat."
During the ceremony, "she just laid there and looked up at her parents."
The couple got Norah as a puppy. "It was love at first sight," Briana said.
Valentino said she and her partner, Rudy, have photographed several weddings that included dogs.
"It's a trend right now," she said. "Everyone wants a wedding with their pets. I'm waiting for someone to incorporate their cat. That would be interesting," she said with a laugh.
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