Bride-to-Be Refuses to Let Sister Bring Therapy Dog to Wedding

A bride-to-be is feuding with her sister who is demanding to bring her therapy dog to the wedding despite the venue's "no-pets policy."

"I’m getting married in a few months, and everything’s been planned down to the last detail. We have decided on a no-pets policy for our wedding because the venue strictly prohibits animals, except for service animals, due to past incidents and allergies of some guests," she began on Reddit.

"My sister has been seeing a therapist for her anxiety, and recently, she got a therapy dog that she’s become incredibly attached to. She insists that she needs the dog to be there with her to manage her anxiety, especially at large gatherings like my wedding," the bride continued.

"I understand where she’s coming from, but I explained the venue’s policy and the potential issues with other guests. I even suggested alternative arrangements, like having a friend she’s comfortable with accompany her and help her through the day or attending the ceremony virtually, which we’ve set up for relatives who can’t make it," she explained.

However, her sister became upset and accused her of being "insensitive to her mental health needs," and her parents think she should try to make an exception, even though she already confirmed the policy with the venue.

"Now, my family is divided, and some are saying I’m an a--hole for not accommodating my sister’s needs on such an important day. I feel torn because I want her to be there and be comfortable, but I also feel like I have to respect the venue’s policies and consider the comfort of all my guests," the bride concluded.

Users supported the bride-to-be in the comments section.

"If her mental health is that fragile, she needs to get a psych service dog, not a therapy dog/emotional support animal (ESA). There are two important differences between them: a psych service dog is trained to do specific tasks to help their person (for example, deep pressure therapy, retrieving medication, alerting to certain mental states so the person can leave or get help as needed), and a psych service dog is fully trained for public access. Those things are why a psych service dog handler gets to bring their dog everywhere while an ESA handler cannot," one person wrote.

"The rule of no animals allowed in the venue is something that is out of your control, taking that as personal attack is kinda dumb. You can’t change your already-paid venue only for one person, there’s nothing else you can do to help her other than giving her the options that you already told her. I also suffer from anxiety and although I can understand that having a therapy dog is really helpful, I also understand that I cannot oblige people to accommodate to my needs," another commented.

"And how does she ever go anywhere? Loads of places don’t allow animals. A therapy dog or ESA is not a service dog so she must have these issues all the time. It is not normal to have animals at a wedding. I don’t see why you need a no-pets policy!" someone else shared.