Moment runaway dog gate-crashes wedding as it runs down the aisle seconds before the bride after escaping home

A bride has spoken of the 'unforgettable' moment a runaway dog scampered down the aisle just seconds before her big entrance. Amy Keene, 30, was readying herself to marry her now-husband Simon, when a Jack Russell burst into a church in Eastleigh, Hampshire, on Saturday. The four-legged wedding crasher, a mischievous Jack Russell named Ellie, had escaped from a nearby home minutes earlier – with her frantic owner seen desperately trying to retrieve the small dog as she ran past the wedding guests.Mr Keene, 31, was nervously waiting for his new bride at the altar and guests were upstanding ready for the bride's entrance when Ellie appeared at the door. She stopped only to sniff the couple's dog, Duggy, who was patiently waiting as a ringbearer.Footage of the incident showed the congregation seeing the funnier side of the moment and erupting with laughter.Before causing havoc, Ellie was being looked after by 'bad boyfriend' Paul Rushforth, who said the dog escaped through a cat flap that had been left unlocked while he was taking rubbish outside.Mr Rushforth admitted he was 'absolutely mortified' and apologised repeatedly to the couple, who said it was 'one of the funniest things that could have happened'. Husband and woof: The moment Ellie the Jack Russell rushed up the aisle of a wedding in Eastleigh, Hampshire, after escaping from home Ellie paused only briefly to sniff the newlyweds' dog, Duggy, who was acting as a ring bearer 'Mortified': Paul Rushforth, who was looking after Ellie for his girlfriend, Jen, said he apologised multiple times as he retrieved the runaway dog from the weddingThe newlywed bride said: 'As my bridesmaids got in order of their entrance I could see a cute little pup running up the road without a lead on.'I twigged it quite quickly as I'm a massive animal lover and wouldn't want any animal to get lost or anything. 'Before I could try and get it, it ran right into the church, which made the whole congregation laugh so much!'Simon said he was waiting at the top of the altar. He was already incredibly nervous, so when the music started and he turned around to see not me but a dog, it helped calm his nerves massively.'It was very unexpected and such a wholesome moment, especially as it's made our day unforgettable.'She added that Duggy had been 'just patiently waiting in his tuxedo holding the rings, being the goodest boy ever' when the incident occurred.Mrs Keene added: 'But even [Duggy's] head was turned by [Ellie]! I assume he just wanted to play with her, but who knows, maybe they fell in love and we will need a second wedding for them.'After Ellie had a good sniff around of everyone and the entrance music had stopped, the owner finally caught Ellie and couldn't have apologised enough. He scooped her up and took her back home.' Un-fur-gettable: Simon and Amy Keene on their wedding day with their ringbearer dog DuggyMr Rushforth, 47, from Totton, Hampshire, was looking after Ellie for his girlfriend Jen when she escaped.The NHS telecoms engineer said: 'I have been a bad boyfriend. While putting out the bins for my girlfriend, I left the cat flap unlocked, not realising Ellie was small enough to get out.'I started chasing her down the road. I could see she had dived down the building, but I'm not local to the area, so I didn't realise what it was at first.'I was absolutely mortified. My heart just stopped.'It's bad enough I let my girlfriend's dog escape. I was thinking I had also ruined a wedding.'She was darting around the guests inside the building when one of them managed to catch hold of her.'I just could not get out of there fast enough. I must have apologised half a dozen times as I escaped.'