Queen’s association with beloved corgis may be taken off leash

Adviser says monarch does not want to leave new dogs behind

The Queen’s long association with corgi dogs may be coming to an end, an animal behavioural expert has claimed.

American trainer Monty Roberts, known as the horse whisperer, has said in a magazine interview that the Queen told him she did not want to have any more puppies of the famous breed.

Roberts told Vanity Fair magazine that in 2012 he asked the Queen to name her favoured corgi breeder so he could replace one of her pets that had died.

It was named Monty in his honour and famously appeared alongside the Queen and James Bond actor Daniel Craig in the 2012 Olympic opening ceremony.

The trainer, who is a personal friend of the Queen and has also provided his services to her mother, said: “But she didn’t want to have any more young dogs. She didn’t want to leave any young dog behind.”

The monarch’s father George VI was the first member of the Royal Family to have one of the diminutive dogs in 1933 and 11 years later the Queen was given a corgi named Susan for her 18th birthday.

The sight of the Queen’s dogs running ahead of their owner is one that has greeted staff and visitors to Buckingham Palace on many occasions. The Queen has two corgis left, Willow and Holly, and two dorgis – corgis mated with a dachshund – called Candy and Vulcan.

A Buckingham Palace spokesman said: “The Queen’s dogs are a private matter for the Queen.”

They’re as much a part of the modern monarchy as the Queen’s Guard and the Crown Jewels — Buckingham Palace without corgis is unimaginable. Their bite was apparently worse than their bark, especially if a Balmoral rabbit was the target.

The corgis will have given Her Majesty companionship and comfort over the years but a new puppy is too much.

Perhaps there are enough Royal youngsters to keep an eye on thanks to William and Kate.

The Queen is often seen out and about with her corgis.