The Queen owned over 30 corgis during her life. At the time of her death she left behind four dogs who will need to be rehomed. Photo / Getty Images
The Queen owned over 30 corgis during her life. At the time of her death she left behind four dogs who will need to be rehomed. Photo / Getty Images
When the Queen died late last week at the age of 96, she left behind four beloved dogs - about which some unusual comments have been made - and a question as to who is likely to take on the royal canines.
Her bereft pets are two corgis, Candy and Muick, a corgi-dachshund cross - also known as a "Dorgi" - named Sandy, and Lissy, her most recently acquired cocker spaniel she named after herself.
And while social media has offered some odd commentary about what may happen to the Queen's dogs, including concern that the animals could be "entombed with the body", it is understood Prince Andrew and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, will adopt the dogs.
Princess Diana once called them a “moving carpet” always by her mother-in-law’s side.
Queen Elizabeth II owned nearly 30 corgis throughout her life. Some people wonder whether her faithful four-legged companions will play a part in her funeral. https://t.co/s99O7BH0sFpic.twitter.com/Bkgwt5T0xL
According to the Telegraph, the Duke and Duchess of York had an ongoing relationship with the Queen's corgis, including gifting the monarch new dogs and spending time with them.
In an attempt to cheer his mother, the Duke is understood to have gifted the Queen two dogs, Muick and Fergus, while Prince Philip was in hospital last year.
While Fergus died after just a few months, he was replaced by another corgi, Sandy. The dogs, found as puppies by the Duchess, are said to have brought "constant joy" to Her Majesty, reports the Telegraph.
She enjoyed long walks with her pets and the occassions offered a chance for the Queen and the Duchess of York - who continues to live with the Duke despite divorcing in 1996 - to bond over their shared love for the animals.
A source close to the Duke told the Telegraph: "The Duchess bonded with Her Majesty over dog walking and riding horses and even after her divorce, she would continue her great friendship with Her Majesty, by walking the dogs in Frogmore and chatting."
Royal biographer Ingrid Seward also suspected Prince Andrew would be the first in line for the dogs, telling Newsweek: "I imagine the dogs would be looked after by the family, probably Andrew [as] he's the one that gave them to her. They're quite young, the corgi and the dorgi."
The Queen's "favourite son", Prince Andrew, is said to be in line to take on his late mother's pets. Photo / Getty Images
Meanwhile, in 2018, Penny Junor, author of All The Queen's Corgis, pointed to the Queen's staff as the most likely to assume care of her canines.
"Care of the dogs has fallen sometimes to footmen but mostly to the Queen's trusted dressmaker, assistant and right-hand woman, Angela Kelly; and to her equally trusted page of many years standing, Paul Whybrew, who was seen walking with the Queen and the dogs in the James Bond spoof," she wrote in her 2018 book.
The Queen's love of dogs lasted her entire lifetime and began with Susan, a corgi gifted to Her Majesty by her parents on her 18th birthday.
Susan, though so loved she joined the Queen on her honeymoon, was not always well behaved. Servants became wary of the dog's penchant for nipping at ankles - a common trait among the breed. Susan's grandson, Whisky, is believed to have bitten the seat of a Guard officer's pants.
The Queen herself was also bitten on the hand when she tried to break up a fight between six of her corgis and two of the Queen Mother's at Windsor.
The Daily Mail reports that the Queen needed stitches and her chauffeur a tetanus jab.
To avoid another biting, canine psychiatrist Dr Roger Mugford was said to have prescribed a shrill rape alarm for the Queen to use to break up future dog fights.
The Queen's corgis had a penchant for nipping at ankles. Photo / Getty Images
But the incident didn't deter her. She went on to own more than 30 corgis, many descended from ankle-biting Susan.
According to the Daily Mail, the aforementioned dorgi was a new breed introduced by the Queen when her corgi Tiny was mated with Princess Margaret's dachshund, Pipkin.
When asked how the new little dogs coped alongside the comparatively large corgis, the Queen reportedly replied: "Oh, it's very simple – we have a little brick they stand on."
