On a cow to the altar: a bride in England surprised guests with an unusual “escort”

The British woman got married without a horse and carriage — instead, she was brought to the church by her own cow, which the owner calls her best friend.

37-year-old Victoria Lee from Dorset decided that at her own wedding she should not have a bridesmaid next to her, but White Chocolate Button, a Swiss cow from her dairy farm, writes xrust. On August 8, the day of her wedding to 40-year-old Mike, the bride rode to St. Mark's Church in the village of Mark, near Burnham-on-Sea, riding her horned pet.

According to Victoria, the idea was not a whim for the sake of beautiful shots. She told the BBC that the cow is practically her best friend, which is why she wanted it to be part of the ceremony.

The roots of the habit are in childhood. Victoria grew up on a family farm and dreamed of having a pony, but her parents did not allow her to have a horse. Then the girl began riding cows — and, having matured, she decided that since she was on friendly terms with animals, why not train one of them to take her to the altar.

Not all cows were prepared for the role. At first, Victoria tried to “mount the saddle” on her other cow, named Basil, but she turned out to be indifferent to the idea and even tried to throw her owner off. But White Chocolate Button coped with it — especially since this was not her first public appearance: on the farm, the cow was already dressed up in a ghost costume for Halloween, throwing on a sheet with slits for the eyes and ears, so she was used to the attention and outfits.

The logistics of the day were thought out with farmer pragmatism. Victoria got to the village by tractor and only rode the last part of the journey on horseback. And immediately after the ceremony, while the guests went to a banquet in a neighboring village, the newlyweds returned to the farm to milk the cows, and only then joined the celebration.

Trend for “farm weddings”

Replacing a horse with a cow is a rare story, but not the only one of its kind: in recent years, it has become fashionable for foreign couples to make animals not just guests, but full-fledged participants in the celebration. In Alaska, an elk once “came” to a wedding himself and calmly chewed bushes right during the ceremony, while the newlyweds and the photographer were laughingly filming the unexpected guest. In New Zealand, wedding planners told how they were looking for a live elephant for the groom's traditional Indian retreat — an animal for the balloon was found, but with great difficulty. And at some Western weddings, instead of a ring mat, guests are greeted by llamas—instead of duplicating the classics, couples are increasingly choosing something that reflects their own lifestyle rather than a wedding catalogue.

For Victoria and Mike, the cow turned out to be just such a symbol: not a decoration, but a part of farm everyday life, which the bride did not want to hide even on her big day.

Sources: bbc.com, people.com, legit.ng

Xrust On a cow to the altar: a bride in England surprised the guests with an unusual “escort”