It is believed that when Princess Margaret's dachshund, Pipkin, mated with one of the Queen's corgis it resulted in the crossbreed informally referred to as "dorgis."
Queen Elizabeth II’s love for dogs is well-known. Her little corgis are as much talked about and loved as the rest of the royal family. The queen has so often been photographed with a pack of pooches running alongside her. Her most recent pet dog died in 2018 and the queen had vowed not to take in any more since she did not want them to outlive her. The royal has always been particularly fond of Welsh Corgis and has had owned more than 30 corgis since she took the title. But a little known fact is that over the years, her corgis became royal dorgis.
The queen has actually been credited for the creation of a new breed of dogs. Well, the hybrid dog breed was not a deliberate process though. It is believed that when Princess Margaret's dachshund, Pipkin, mated with one of the Queen's corgis it resulted in the crossbreed informally referred to as "dorgis." The queen loved the puppies so much that she continued to breed dorgis, reported PEOPLE. In fact, her most recent pet dogs were mostly all dorgis. The dorgis the queen has had over the years include Cider, Rum, Berry, Candy, Brandy, Chipper, Harris, Pickles, Piper, Tinker, and Vulcan.
Queen Elizabeth and her beloved corgis and dorgis, a life in pictures. #HappyBirthdayYourMajesty 🎂🎂🎂 pic.twitter.com/WATBtYRE5U
— AJ+ (@ajplus) April 21, 2016
Sadly, Vulcan passed away in 2020 which left behind Candy the only another dorgi. She was gifted a dorgi puppy earlier this year by her son Prince Andrew when Prince Philip was in the hospital. The puppy was named Fergus, after Fergus Bowes-Lyon, the Queen's late uncle, and was seen with the queen walking in the royal estates after the passing of Prince Philip. The puppy seemed to bring her some comfort after the death of her husband. Unfortunately, in less than a month Fergus also passed away, leaving the queen even more broken-hearted. She was also given a corgi puppy that she named Muick, after Loch Muick, a lake on the royal estate. Muick passed away as well.
These puppies were taken in by the queen as a way to bring cheer following the fallout the royal family had with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and Prince Philip's hospitalization. She broke her vow to not allow her pets to outlive her and got more puppies as a way to cope with the stress of family drama. “The Queen is delighted. It’s unthinkable that the Queen wouldn’t have any corgis," a royal insider told The Sun at the time. “It’s like the Tower of London not having any ravens. They have only been there a couple of weeks but are said to be adorable and made the castle their home. Both are said to be bringing in a lot of noise and energy into the castle while Philip is in hospital.”
In 2018, Willow, the last descendant of her original corgi, Susan, the dog the queen had received on her 18th birthday in 1944, passed away, reported CNN. Her dogs enjoyed the limelight and had even graced the cover of Vanity Fair along with their owner in 2016. Willow had also appeared with the queen and actor Daniel Craig in the 2012 London Olympics opening ceremony. Willow along with Holly even has a children's book dedicated to them. Written by Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks it is an illustrated children’s book titled What the Ladybird Heard on Holiday.
The queen is an iconic presence in the UK and had even contributed to a corgi boom. She is also the Patron of the Dogs Trust, a dog welfare organization in the UK and has passed down that love of animals to her children and grandchildren. The royals are also fond of horses and equestrian pursuits, including horse racing and breeding.
References:
https://people.com/royals/queen-elizabeth-princess-anne-dorgi-inventor/
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/14238743/queen-given-corgis-to-get-through-crisis/
https://edition.cnn.com/2020/12/04/uk/queens-dorgi-dies-scli-intl-gbr/index.html
Image Source: Getty Images/WPA Pool / Pool
