The death of Queen Elizabeth II has sparked a huge shift for the British royal family. With a new king, Charles III, and several new titles for other family members, including Prince William and his wife Kate who become the Prince and Princess of Wales, there will be plenty of internal movement as the family prepares for life without its longstanding matriarch.
And, the queen’s death will also mean a shift for the family’s furry members. She was known for her lifelong love of dogs — and in particular corgis — and had four in her care at the time of her death.
Buckingham Palace is yet to confirm what will happen to her two corgis, corgi-dachshund cross (known as a dorgi) and cocker spaniel, named Candy, Lissy, Muick and Sandy, but it’s safe to expect they will be rehomed within the extended family or by royal household staff.
However, the king is said to prefer Jack Russell terriers, while William and Kate are already parents to a black cocker spaniel named Orla, so they may not stay with the families of either heirs.
During her life, the queen had more than 30 dogs — many of them corgis. And, while corgis have become closely associated with the royal family as a result, they are not traditional royal pets. In fact, it was a young Elizabeth, along with her sister Margaret, who sparked the association, after they were gifted a puppy named Dookie by King George VI in 1933. Sadly, the queen’s second corgi, Jane, was hit by a car in 1944.
Perhaps her most famous and beloved pet, however, was the corgi given to her on her 18th birthday — a two-month-old puppy named Susan.
Susan features in many early pictures with Elizabeth when she was a young woman, and was the pet by her side when she married Prince Philip, and during the death of her father and her accession to queen. So beloved was Susan, that the queen bred corgis from her lineage for decades.
The queen also owned gun dogs, labradors and cocker spaniels, with the pets living at Sandringham in Norfolk. She was known to enjoy talking them for walks and continued to do so well into her nineties.
21 photos of royal families from around the world with their pet pooches
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Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, with a family dog in a throwback post shared by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai. Instagram / Faz3 -
Baloo, Sheikh Hamdan's dog, is seen here being held by Mohammed bin Ahmed Jaber Al Harbi, known as Maj, the son of the Crown Prince's friend Ahmed Jaber Al Harbi. Instagram / Faz3 -
Queen Elizabeth II with some of her corgis walking the Cross Country course during the second day of the Windsor Horse Trials in 1980. Reuters -
Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, with a newborn Prince George in August 2013. Tilly the retriever, a Middleton family pet, and Lupo, the couple's late cocker spaniel, can also be seen. AFP -
Japan's Crown Princess Masako and her husband Crown Prince Naruhito with their pet dog Yuri at Togu Palace in Tokyo in December 2018. AFP -
Norway's Crown Prince Haakon, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, Prince Sverre Magnus and Princess Ingrid Alexandra pose with their labradoodle dogs Milly Kakao and Muffins Krakebolle during their holiday on the island of Dvergsoya, near Kristiansand, in July 2020. AFP -
Mohammed Zahir Shah of Afghanistan relaxing with his dog circa 1960. Getty Images -
Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, carries her Jack Russell dog Bluebell as she arrives at Battersea Dog and Cats Home on December 12, 2012 in London, England. Getty Images -
Prince Charles with his labrador retriever in 1978. Shutterstock -
This undated photo shows Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who died in 2016, and his dogs at the Royal Palace in Bangkok. AFP -
Prince Carl Philip, Princess Sofia and Prince Alexander with Siri in 2016. Erika Gerdemark / Royal Court of Sweden -
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, with her rescue dogs, Guy and Bogart. Meghan Markle / Instagram -
Dutch royals King Willem Alexander, Queen Maxima, Princess Ariane, Princess Amalia and Princess Alexia have two black labradors, including Nala. AFP -
Queen Margrethe of Denmark and the late Prince Consort Henrik pose with their dachshund dogs Evita and Celimene in August 2001. AFP -
Edward, Duke of Windsor, and his wife, Wallis, Duchess of Windsor, arrive with pet pugs at Saint-Lazare train station in Paris, in May 1960. AFP -
King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia with their pet dog, Brandy, in December 2019. Sara Friberg / Royal Court of Sweden -
A young Queen Victoria and her dog Dash, painted by George Hayter. Royal Collection Trust / Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II -
Queen Alexandra of Denmark with two of her pet dogs in 1901. Getty Images -
Zara Phillips with Sway, the boxer. Getty Images -
Princess Anne has owned a number of bull terrier dogs. She is seen here driving her Land Rover Discovery as she attends the Gatcombe Horse Trials at Gatcombe Park in March 2019. Getty Images
