From palace luxury to Andrew’s farm: how the Queen’s corgis went from royal spoils to red alert
Well known for her love of dogs, corgis were synonymous with Queen Elizabeth II’s reign. Her adoration for the breed dates back to her childhood when she fell in love with a neighbor’s corgi.
At seven years old, her father, who was Duke of York at the time, got one for her and her sister, Princess Margaret. They named the dog Dookie after the Duke, and so began a lifelong love affair.
After Dookie joined the royal household, corgis were the late Queen’s canine of choice with Her Majesty going on to own at least 30 of them throughout her 70-year reign.
She had a very special relationship with them, and they were said to live the life of luxury, sleeping in wicker baskets, receiving stockings at Christmas and enjoying lavish meals served on silver trays.
After she died, her two surviving corgis, Sandy and Muick, were even pictured at her funeral on September 19, 2022.
Then they were taken in by her son Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson. To mark International Dog Day last year, Sarah shared two photographs of Sandy and Muick.
The Duchess described caring for the dogs as a "big honor" and has referred to them as "national treasures".
Fergie even went so far as to claim that she felt the late Queen Elizabeth II communicates with her through the two corgis.
In a March 2023 appearance on ITV’s This Morning, a pet psychic told Ferguson that the dogs were experiencing grief and indicated that one of the dogs was suffering from a slightly bloated stomach.
Now her disgraced ex-husband Andrew Mountbatten Windsor has taken over the care of the two remaining corgis at his temporary home at Wood Farm in Norfolk after he and Sarah were evicted from their Royal Lodge home at Windsor.
With Sarah believed to be lying low abroad and no longer living with the disgraced former Duke, he is now thought to have sole ownership of the corgis.
They were last pictured earlier this week on a walk with security personnel. However, not everyone is happy about where Muick and Sandy have ended up living - and it’s been claimed that Andrew’s links to the corgis is proving disastrous for the breed.
“It would seem everything Andrew touches ends in disaster,” remarked Beverley Cuddell, Editor of Dogs Today magazine for the past 30 years.
“The corgi has gone from being pretty much the poshest dog in the world to in effect being canceled since he became their guardian.”
Andrew’s dogs are now being walked by staff with their owner effectively a recluse. The canine pack, which includes the fallen prince’s own Norfolk terriers as well as the two famous corgis, used to be given regular walkies by him when he lived in Windsor.
But since he was evicted from Royal Lodge at the King’s insistence and moved to a farmhouse on the margins of the Sandringham estate, their disgraced owner has given up taking them out himself and relied on his staff instead.
And there is more bad news for the Pembroke Welsh Corgi (which is Welsh for dwarf dog). They have appeared on a list of 67 dogs which may be banned under new health guidelines for dogs being considered by the all-party parliamentary group (APPG) for animal welfare.
It aims to force out physical attributes which shorten the lives of man’s best friends and one of them is the corgi. The checklist classes dogs with shorter legs as those with a gap between their chest and ground that is less than one third of their shoulder height.
This apparent defect can result in numerous health issues including spinal deformities, joint pain, arthritis and limb abnormalities, according to the guidelines.
Secretary of the Welsh Corgi League, Margaret Hoggarth, claims the animals are "very healthy" – but are being "lumped in" with the unhealthy, just for their short legs.
Technology & Business Editor
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
