Dying Dog Lives Just Long Enough to See His Human Get Married

Every bride wants to be surrounded by her family and friends come her big day. And for this bride, that guest list of loved ones included her 15-year-old Labrador Retriever mix, Charlie Bear. But it wasn’t a sure thing that the pup would be able to check ‘yes’ on that RSVP. You see, Charlie Bear was battling a brain tumor and his health was quickly failing. But the much-loved dog ended up living just long enough to see his best friend say “I do,” even managing to join her for that walk down the aisle. Prepare for all the tears, y’all…

The bride, Kelly O’Connell, met the black Lab when he was just a puppy. The veterinarian was working at an animal shelter when the tiny 12-week-old pup was brought in after being abandoned in a shopping cart at a grocery store. It was love at first sight — her first love, that is! Years later, O’Connell met her now-husband, got engaged, and moved in with him and his two sons. “Charlie got whatever he wanted,” O’Connell shared with Buzzfeed. “But I couldn’t offer him a family. As soon as I met James and the boys, it was the last thing that I could give him. We were one big happy family.”

But after a brain tumor diagnosis last April, no one was quite sure Charlie would live to see his human walk down the aisle. And just a week ahead of the wedding, the Labrador Retriever suffered five seizures, weakening him further. “I just thought, ‘I want him to see this,'” O’Connell remembers. Aaannddd we’re crying…

However, as if he could sense the big day approaching, Charlie pulled through for his best friend’s wedding day. But too weak to walk down the grassy aisle on his own, the bride’s maid-of-honor carried the heavy Labrador to the ceremony site, with the tearjerking moment captured by wedding photographer Jen Dziuvenis. There, Charlie sat at his humans’ feet as they said “I do” (and as we sob uncontrollably). “We just kept saying, ‘You made it, buddy, you made it,'” says O’Connell.

See More: 59 Adorable Ways to Include Your Pet in Your Wedding

Just a little over a week later, O’Connell made the heartbreaking decision to end her dog’s pain and put him to sleep. “It was worth it to see the happiness on his face that day,” the bride told People. “He wanted to be there and I’m glad he was.”

“I’ll miss Charlie,” she said. “He was my best friend. But he’ll never be forgotten. And we’ll always have the wedding photos to remember him by.”

Aaannddd we’re crying again. This story is more emotional than the end of Homeward Bound…