What will happen to Queen Elizabeth's beloved corgis?

Among the hallmarks of Queen Elizabeth II was her love for animals, and particularly dogs.

On Thursday, the Queen died in her Balmoral estate in Scotland at age 96. Over the course of her life, Elizabeth owned more than 30 pets — a majority of which were Pembroke Welsh Corgis.

She leaves behind at least four dogs — two corgis, one cocker spaniel and one dorgi (a dachshund corgi hybrid that the Queen is credited in originating). Their names are Muick, Sandy, Lissy and Candy, respectively.

Elizabeth's affinity for dogs can be traced back to her 18th birthday, when she was first given a corgi named Susan, from whom all the corgis bred by the queen are descended.

Over the decades, the queen's canine companions were often seen close by their owner wherever she went. In 2014, they helped comfort Dr. David Nott, a surgeon who had just returned from Syria, during a PTSD attack.

In 2015, Elizabeth decided she would stop bringing new dogs under her care out of fear of leaving any puppies behind, Monty Roberts, a royal horse whisperer told Vanity Fair. But after her husband Prince Philip's death in 2021, Elizabeth had a change of heart.

Without Elizabeth, the dogs may be separated and given to various family members, some experts speculate.

"Andrew has Cocker Spaniels so he might take back the one he gave her. William and Kate also love dogs so they could have them," Claudia Joseph, a journalist based in London, told the New York Post.

Others believe the pets may be under the care of Elizabeth's trusted staff.

Penny Junor, who has written extensively about the queen's corgis, noted that both Elizabeth's dressmaker, Angela Kelly, and royal employee, Paul Whybrew, have experience caring for the Queen's dogs, Newsweek reported.

After her passing, Annie Leibovitz who photographed the queen with her pets in 2016, wrote on Twitter, "The Queen went out walking with her dogs every day... The Queen grew up with corgis, fearless little dogs bred for herding cattle. Her father brought a corgi home when she was seven, and she was not without one— for decades afterward."

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