A dog found a way to upstage her owner on her wedding day with the grandest of entrances.

There once was a time when the idea of inviting your dog to a wedding was unheard of, but that notion is firmly in the past. In fact, a recent poll of 2,000 dog owners conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Amazon Handmade found nearly two-thirds of respondents would involve their dog.

These pet owners envisioned their dogs taking up a variety of roles, with ring bearer (50 percent), flower girl (17 percent), and page boy (13 percent) all popular options. Some even liked the idea of their dog serving as best man (nine percent) though that would probably make for an interesting wedding speech.

Yet few, if any, dogs are likely to have enjoyed the kind of privileged position Darcy the Shih Tzu enjoyed when her owner Sophie Nunn from the U.K. tied the knot with her long-term partner Ryan earlier this month.

This is a love story that dates back to March 2021, when Darcy came into Sophie and Ryan's lives. "We were living in Australia with Ryan's mom," Sophie told Newsweek. "She took in a rescue dog, a golden Shih Tzu, and after spending time with them during COVID in lockdown, it didn't take long to fall in love with her and the breed."

When they eventually returned to the U.K. after the pandemic, Sophie set her heart on getting their own Shih Tzu and eventually found Darcy. Her prized pet pooch has enjoyed a life of luxury ever since, with Sophie joking that she "doesn't always identify as a dog" due to the special treatment she receives.

"She has a love/hate relationship with walking, as with most things, it's all on her terms," Sophie said. "She has multiple toy boxes in different rooms of the house as she loves to play, frequently bursts into zoomies, chases after balls, birds and squirrels—although rarely one to go off and play with other dogs she likes to hang out with the humans."

A fan of off-the-lead runs on the beach, cuddles with no regard for personal space, and naps aplenty, Sophie makes no apologies for Darcy being a "big part of our life." "She is our first-born and comes everywhere she can with us. Even most places that say they don't accept dogs, often make exceptions."

So when Sophie and Ryan got married at Wickerwood Farm in East Sussex on August 3, she said there was "never a question" of her being involved. Having a celebrant wedding overseen by Roxy Hayde meant they could incorporate Darcy into our love story" and even better, into the ceremony itself. The result was the most lavish of entrances, with Darcy in a special white gown driving down the aisle just before the bride in his own tiny white remote-controlled car.

"Ryan had seen our niece in a small electric car and the seed was planted," Sophie said. The resulting entrance was captured on camera in a video posted to Sophie's business TikTok account The Pilates Lab Studio. It shows Darcy cruising down the aisle while Queen's "Don't Stop Me Now" plays. "She is a Queen after all," Sophie jokes. It's a pretty impressive entrance but one that took a little work.

"Practice started once Ryan's parents arrived from Australia, we had made the decision his dad would drive Darcy down the aisle as he could practice in secret—our guests didn't know what we had planned," Sophie said. "Darcy took to sitting in the car like a fish to water."

What worked in practice proved a little trickier on the day though. "She seemed more nervous than in the practices, but after a few cuddles and 'good girls' as I placed her in, she cruised along without a care in the world," Sophie said. Once her grand entrance was complete and Darcy had said hello to the guests, she curled up by Sophie's wedding dress for a well-earned nap.

Darcy's entrance stole the show and provided another special memory from what was a truly magical day for Sophie and Ryan. "People are still talking about it," Sophie said. "She got all the giggles and wahoos and really set the ceremony off how we wanted."

There was never any doubt of Darcy playing a part in proceedings but Sophie would encourage anyone on the fence about including their dog to "100 percent do it." "Darcy is part of our family," she said. "It's a day you'll never have again, one to remember forever so if you want to have them there, then make it happen."

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