Queen Elizabeth was both a dog and horse lover her whole life.
Queen Elizabeth II was a dog and horse lover her whole life, so it's no wonder that fans are wondering what will happen to her beloved pets following news of her death on Thursday.
Her Majesty is said to have had four dogs at the time of her death, two Pembroke Welsh corgis named Muick and Sandy, a dorgi called Candy, and a cocker spaniel named Lissy. It's also been reported that she had over 100 horses.
"She loves animals and she absolutely adores dogs," royal biographer Ingrid Seward tells Newsweek. "She always has done, they were her first love and they will be her last."
While Buckingham Place has not confirmed what will happen to Queen Elizabeth's animals, royal experts have some predictions.
"I imagine the dogs would be looked after by the family, probably [Prince] Andrew [as] he's the one that gave them to her. They're quite young, the corgi and the dorgi," Seward says.
Meanwhile, British author and journalist Penny Junor implied in her 2018 book, All the Queen's Corgis, that the dogs will be looked after by Queen Elizabeth's staff.
"Care of the dogs has fallen sometimes to footmen but mostly to the queen's trusted dressmaker, assistant and right-hand woman, Angela Kelly; and to her equally trusted page of many years standing, Paul Whybrew, who was seen walking with the queen and the dogs in the James Bond spoof," Junor writes. "Both are fond of the dogs, have unfettered access to the Queen and are said to be very close to her."
Joe Little, a royal biographer and managing editor of Majesty magazine, seems to agree with both ladies, telling CNN that he thinks the staff will look after the dogs before they are adopted by Queen Elizabeth's children, Princess Anne and Prince Andrew.
"Princess Anne has had corgis of her own in the past," Little explained. "The two most recent additions came from the Duke of York and his daughters, so perhaps they could go to him. It's unlikely that they'll be split up."
It is possible that royal fans may never know what happens to Queen Elizabeth's pets. As TMZ points out, Her Majesty's last will and testament that leaves her possessions, including dogs and horses, to designated beneficiaries, is likely to be kept under wraps for many years.
When Prince Philip died last year, an English judge declared that his will be sealed for 90 years.
It was just after Philip's death that the queen got two new corgis, but she's been a lover of the breed since she was gifted her first one, Susan, in 1933 for her 18th birthday.
In 2016, she posed at Windsor Castle on the cover of Vanity Fair with four of her dogs at the time.
“The most moving, important thing about this shoot is that these were all her ideas,” photographer Annie Leibovitz told Vanity Fair at the time. “[Queen Elizabeth] wanted to be photographed with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren; her husband, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh; her daughter, Anne, the Princess Royal; and her corgis.”
And in February of this year, the queen's dog, Candy, made a surprise appearance as Her Highness carried out a memorabilia viewing at Windsor Castle, ahead of the 70th anniversary of her accession to the throne.
When her pup trotted into the Oak Room, Queen Elizabeth sweetly petted her and said, "And where did you come from? I know what you want."
For updates on Queen Elizabeth's death, check out ET's ongoing coverage here.
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