If your cat is up to the trip, why not include them in the big day?!? Your kitties are just as important as any other members of the fam, so they deserve to be included in your elopement (if you want them to be, and if they’re down for it)! I alwayssss see blog posts about how to include your dogs in your elopement but never anything about including your cats in your elopement 😉 So we’re going to change that today!
You probably already know I’m obsessed with my cats, in fact I even foster kittens all the time! My house (and life) basically revolves around whatever cats are in it at the time, Jake and I are just living on their schedules lol. So of course I would want to bring my cats to my elopement! Though maybe not the teeny-tiny, 2-week old foster babies 😅
Want an article about bringing your *actual* babies to your elopement instead? Here’s a guide with 15 Fun Ways to Include Your Kids in Your Elopement!
They don’t always have to be a part of the WHOLE day though, they could join you at the Airbnb for the getting ready portion of the day, and then they can chill at the house while you have your adventure. OR they could be brought by friends for just the ceremony part of the day so they can stand by your side while you say your vows and then be escorted back home! Or maybe they’re waiting for you at the Airbnb for you to return at the end of the night to celebrate with them! However you decide to include your fur babies is special, so I wanted to give you a few different ideas of ways you can include your cats, specifically, in your elopement!
But before we get into that, I have 3 important tips when it comes to eloping with your cats, to make sure you know what to expect + how to prepare.
3 Tips for Bringing Your Cats to Your Elopement
1. Don’t force them!
Seriously, only bring your cats to your elopement if they’re up for it—especially if it involves traveling. I know firsthand how much of a pain it is to bring cats anywhere (even to the vet, let alone on a road trip to some remote destination), so if you want to bring your cats, make sure that they are going to be safe, comfortable, and mostly happy. You can’t always avoid cats being a little irritated though, especially in car rides, so that’s just inevitable. But you CAN do your best to make sure they’re well-prepared; e.g. you know how to safely transport them, you have leashes, you have food/water/treats, and they’ll be as comfortable as they can be. If it’s going to be too much of a hassle to bring them and you think it could cause them a lot of anxiety, don’t do it—they can still be there with ya in spirit!
And if they have any favorite toys, blankets, treats, or anything that smells like them, bring those along to help them calm down and feel less stressed in unfamiliar places!
2. Be realistic about how it’ll impact your day
Along the same lines (but this time more focused on you), make sure you’re prepared for how bringing your kitties will impact your day. It’s honestly like bringing kids along, you have to make sure they’re always taken care of and being watched! And if that’s not something you want to have to deal with on your elopement day, then either don’t bring them, or have someone you designate to be with them all day (see my next point). If it’s going to stress you the hell out to have your cats there and constantly be making sure they’re okay, then it might not be worth it to bring them along for the ride. Don’t worry, there are plenty of ways you can include them from afar if you do decide not to bring them!
3. Consider hiring a cat handler
Did you even know there was such a thing?! It sounds hilarious, but cat handlers for weddings do actually exist! And so do dog handlers! If you want to bring your cats to your elopement and make sure you don’t have to worry about them + you can trust that they’re being well-taken care of, you can literally hire a professional to watch them all day and take all the stress off of you. This is a great option if you don’t want one of your guests to have to be responsible for them!
There’s actually a team called To Wag & To Hold in Seattle that offers dog care at weddings, and they also have a cat handler available! They’ll make sure your kitty (or kitties) are taken care of, given food/water, kept safely, etc. and you won’t even have to think about it. Your babies will be brought right to you for portraits when it’s time 🙂 Sooo much peace of mind knowing they’re in good hands.
8 Adorable Ways to Include Your Cats In Your Elopement
Now let’s get into my favorite ways to include your cats in your actual elopement!
1. Get ready with them
Getting ready with your kitties is SO CUTE I cannot handle it. Sharyce and Nick legit got ready with their three cats AND their dog, and they’re some of my favorite elopement photos ever!! If you’re staying in an Airbnb or a cat-friendly hotel, this is the way to go because you can just hang out with them while you do your makeup and hair, put on your outfit, give each other gifts, etc. It’s probably the way to make your day feel the most like a normal day in your lives, just like when you get ready at home in the morning and your cats join you in the bathroom, you know? They give us no privacy! But take advantage of that and let them come explore the place you’re staying, your makeup palettes that are on the floor, and your sparkly shoes that they really want to scratch. So freakin’ cute, I can’t!
2. Bring them to your ceremony
There are a few different ways you can bring your cats to your ceremony and include them in the official stuff!
—Put them in a stroller: This is what Sharyce and Nick did; they put their kitties in a stroller, had a friend push the stroller to the ceremony, and then had the stroller near the altar when they tied the knot. It was hilarious looking over during their vow exchange and seeing the cats trying to poke their heads out to figure out what was going on. This is probably the easiest way to do it so that they’re in a safe and enclosed space!
—Put them in separate carriers: You could also have each of your kitties in their own carrier if they prefer to have their own space, and then either put the carriers on their own chairs or on the laps of your guests.
—Have them on a leash: If you want your cat to be out and about, and ONLY if they’re comfortable with it + it won’t stress them out, you could have them on a leash and controlled during your ceremony! For this, though, you’ll definitely need a designated guest to take care of them, if not an actual cat handler.
3. Include them in your photos
Duh! If you have your kitties at your elopement, you have to take portraits with them! I’m literally obsessed with these portraits we took in the Alabama Hills, this sweet baby was SO well behaved and was by far the most adorable thing that these mountains have ever seen. They kept him on a leash and he just walked around the sand with them, watching all the birds and the grass blowing in the wind and looking so handsome! If your kitty is a little more jumpy or wiggly, that’s okay! I’m a pro at dealing with cats and their wild behavior, and also at taking plenty of pictures so that we get at least a few good ones with everyone looking at the camera haha.
4. Decorate with their paw prints
This one is great whether you’re bringing your cats to your actual elopement, or you just want to include them in spirit! You can get paw prints of your kitties and place them on your vow books, on the decorative copy of your marriage license that you’re going to frame (like they’re your “witnesses”), on your invites, or honestly anywhere you want. Another place could be your dinner menus or on the name tags at your dinner table! Be sure to use a non-toxic, pet-safe ink pad like this one!
5. Have portraits of them up at your elopement
If it’s easier to leave your babies at home but you still want to celebrate with them in some way, bring portraits of them to your elopement to put either on a table somewhere, on a chair at your ceremony, or to hold up in photos of the two of you. You can use actual pictures of them, or you could go a step further and get a custom portrait of them done from somewhere like Etsy! I’ve seen couples put portraits of their fur babies on the backs of their vow books/the paper they printed their vows on and it was SO cute. Oh, and I’ve also seen a couple make cardboard cutouts of their pets and literally put them on popsicle sticks to hold up in photos! You can have fun with it and there are so many ways to get creative!
6. Dress them up
Obviouslyyy. Sharyce and Nick’s kitties looked cute as hell in their little bowties, I swear I couldn’t stop taking pictures. You can coordinate with your cats or give them their own themed attire, whether that be miniature ties/bow ties, custom harnesses, tiny little flower crowns, or little boots if they’ll be walking on poky/cold terrain! Bonus points if their colors match your elopement colors, just like Nick’s green velvet suit matched his kitties’ green velvet bowties. Ugh I’m obsessed.
7. Have them as your cake toppers
Are cake toppers still a thing? I feel like I barely see them anymore, but if they are, then that’s a great opportunity to incorporate your kitties! There are tons of cat cake toppers on Etsy that you can customize to look like your own cats, and it’s such an easy + cheap way to include them without a ton of hassle.
8. Honor your kitties who have passed
Finally, if you have any kitties who aren’t with you anymore, you can absolutely include and honor them in your elopement, too! In fact you should, they’re just as much a part of your lives and hearts as your current pets are ❤️If you have a copy of their paw print, you could include it on your marriage license or vow books like I mentioned earlier, and you could also include portraits of them in your elopement like I said. Or if you have their ashes, you could put those in a little container and tie it around your bouquet, just like people will sometimes do with loved ones who have passed away. If you have any commemorative tattoos of your babies, definitely let me know so that I can take photos of them on your elopement day!
I hope this guide has helped you realize all the fun ways you can include your cats in your elopement, it’s so much fun having all of the members of the fam together and I would love to take all the cute pics of your kitties! Reach out here and let’s make it happen!
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