Life
I have a lot of questions about the royal pet situation. Will the Queen ever cave and get a new corgi? Do Will and Kate want to expand their dog family? Are Meghan's shelter dogs still living with her now that's she's upgraded from actress to princess? It turns out, the royals are a little pet crazy, and keeping up with their pets is seemingly a full-time job. If you're wondering what four-legged friends are living their best life behind those castle walls, here are 8 pets that the royal family currently has.
When talking about royal pets, you must start with Queen Elizabeth II's lifelong love of corgis. Queen Elizabeth was given a corgi named Susan for her 18th birthday and since then has "owned at least 30 Pembroke Welsh corgis, all of whom have descended from Susan," according to The New York Times.
Sadly, in April, the Queen lost her beloved corgi, Willow, who was the last corgi in the Susan lineage, according to the Washington Post. "She has mourned every one of her corgis over the years, but she has been more upset about Willow’s death than any of them. It is probably because Willow was the last link to her parents and a pastime that goes back to her own childhood. It really does feel like the end of an era," explained the Washington Post article.
So, is the era of the royal corgi really kaput, or is there another breed that the younger royals have embraced, and by proximity, the Queen as well? Let's dive in.
The Queen's Dorgis
While the Queen might be without her corgis, she still has some other trusted canine companions.
"The queen has two such dogs, Vulcan and Candy, who are part of a crossbreed created when a dachshund belonging to the queen’s sister, Princess Margaret, mated with one of the queen’s corgis," reported The New York Times.
To sneak a peek at what these royal dorgis look like, you need not look any further than the June/July 2016 cover of Vanity Fair, which features the late Willow, along with Vulcan and Candy alongside the Queen.
Lupo & Marvin
Before taking the plunge into parenthood, Prince William and Duchess Kate got a pooch, a cocker spaniel, they named Lupo, according to Hello!.
The family also has a pet hamster named Marvin, according to People.
But even though the royal pair expanded their family size considerably with their ever-adorable children George, Charlotte, and Louis, their pet size has remained the same — that is unless you consider chickens to be pets!
Guy
Before marrying Prince Harry, Meghan Markle had two other serious loves, her dogs Bogart, a rescue Labrador-shepherd mix, and Guy, a rescue beagle, according to W.
Yet only Guy made the trip across the pond to live with the royal pair at Kensington Palace; sadly Bogart was considered to old to adjust to the move, according to the same W article.
Guy made headlines during the royal wedding for catching a royal ride with the Queen, although that wasn't actually what happened, according to Snopes. The ride in question might have taken place the day before the wedding, reported Snopes.
Bluebell & Beth
The new Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, isn't the only duchess with an affinity for rescue pups.
Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, adopted two Jack Russell dogs — Bluebell and Beth — from the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home in 2012, according to the Daily Mail.
"I love Jack Russells, they are such intelligent dogs," explained Camilla at a charity even reported on by the Daily Mail.
