Royals

Queen Elizabeth II Plans to Give Up Corgis

Published

11 years ago

February 3, 2015

LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 22: Queen Elizabeth II awaits the arrival of Turkey's President Abdullah Gul and his wife Hayrunnisa Gul at an offical welcoming ceremony on November 22, 2011 in London, England. The President of Turkey is on a five day State visit to the UK. (Photo by Paul Hackett - WPA Pool/Getty Images)

The reign of corgis at Buckingham Palace is sadly coming to an end.

Queen Elizabeth II will reportedly stop breeding corgis when her beloved dogs, Willow and Holly, pass away, as she fears a puppy could cause her serious injury and leave her unable to perform her royal duties.

"She worries about too many dogs around her feet and the danger she will trip up and hurt herself badly. She is after all 88 and not getting any younger," a senior courtier told Britain's 'Sunday Express' newspaper.

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Elizabeth with two of her childhood pet corgis in July 1936.

"Her main fear is that if she fell and broke her arm or even a leg she would not be able to perform her duties for many weeks if not months, and that would upset her greatly," the courtier added.

Corgis — a breed of small herding dogs that originated in Wales — have been a part of the royal family for more than eight decades, with Queen Elizabeth herself having cared for over 30 dogs throughout her 63-year-reign.

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Queen Elizabeth with her corgis at Sandringham in 1980.

The first royal corgi, named Dookie, was reportedly bought by the Queen's father, King George VI, from a local kennel in 1933. He also gifted a corgi puppy named Susan to the then Princess Elizabeth for her 18th birthday in 1944.

'Sunday Express' first reported this news.