Pawsh Pooch Wedding Breaks World Record

A tiny Coton de Tulear and colorful Poodle made history Thursday night by tying the knot in a lavish, $270,000 wedding – the most expensive one ever in the pet world.

The bride, Baby Hope Diamond, wore a $6,000 custom-made designer gown. She and the groom, Chilly Pasternak, were pronounced husband and woof by Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog, at the Jumeirah Essex House hotel in New York City.

“Baby Hope, do you take this pooch to love, not spend the night with and advocate for animal welfare as long as you both shall live?” Triumph asked during the ceremony, according to ABC News. “If so, breathe heavily.”

He then asked the groom, “And do you, Chilly, take this purse jockey to be your wife? Katie Holmes is back on the market, and I don’t think it would be any weirder than her first marriage. If so, sweat through your tongue.”

After the ceremony, the 250 two-legged and 50 four-legged invited guests – who each paid $250 to attend the nuptials – enjoyed a $5,000 sushi banquet along with dog treats donated by Ellen Degeneres. Musical entertainment was provided by a $15,000 seven-piece orchestra. The room was filled with $30,000 worth of fuschia orchids, according to the New York Daily News.

If your eyeballs are getting tired from all that rolling, be aware that this over-the-top affair was held for a very worthy cause: to raise money for the Lucky Diamond Critical Care Ward at the Humane Society of New York.

Baby Hope’s maid of honor and wedding planner was her dog mom, Wendy Diamond, an entrepreneur and animal rescue advocate. The Lucky Diamond Critical Care Ward is named after Diamond’s beloved Maltese, who died of cancer last month.

Lucky himself had been a Guinness World Record holder as the Animal Most Photographed with Celebrities, appearing in pics with nearly 400 stars.

When Diamond learned that Lucky was terminally ill, she held a contest to find a new mascot for Animal Fair, the charity she started after she adopted Lucky in 1999. But when Lucky crossed the Rainbow Bridge, Diamond changed the contest so it would be to find the pawfect pooch to wed Baby Hope. (One of the candidates was i Love Dogs ambassador Cardiff, the adorable Welsh Terrier belonging to our Ask a Vet, Dr. Patrick Mahaney.)

Based on Facebook votes, the winner of the contest was Chilly, a rescued, rainbow-dyed Poodle who lives in Virginia.

ABC News reported that the event raised $50,000 for the Lucky Diamond Critical Care Ward.

The wedding broke the Guinness world record for most expensive pet wedding, which was the $16,241 marriage of two cats in Thailand back in 1996.

“This was the sweetest and most beautiful animal benefit in history,” Diamond told Good Morning America.

i Love Dogs wishes Baby Hope and Chilly many years of wedded bliss. For their diamond anniversary (60 years for humans; about eight years for dogs), perhaps the canine couple will consider these fabulous collars as gifts.

PHOTO: Facebook

Laura Goldman

Laura Goldman is senior social media writer for i Love Dogs, Inc. She does love dogs. And elephants and turtles. Along with writing about the loves of her life, Laura likes to play with her two pound pups and tell anyone who’ll listen just how awesome Pit Bulls are.