The couple, who split in 1996, both reside at Royal Lodge on the Windsor estate. The source told CNN that the Duchess bonded with the monarch over a shared love of dog walking and horse riding. Even after her divorce from Prince Andrew, Sarah continued her friendship with the Queen by walking dogs around the Windsor estate, the source added. The Queen, who died on Thursday aged 96, reportedly had four dogs, two of which are Pembroke Welsh corgis, Muick and Sandy. She is also reported to have left behind an elderly, mixed-breed “dorgi” named Candy and a cocker spaniel named Lissy. It is not clear who will take care of Candy and Lissy. Corgis have become synonymous with the monarch, who throughout her life was regularly photographed with a Welsh corgi at her feet. The Queen is often credited with creating the dorgi breed when her corgi was mated to a dachshund owned by her sister, Princess Margaret. The Queen’s passion for corgis dates back to her childhood, when she fell in love with her father, King George VI’s dog, Dukie. In 1944, on her 18th birthday, she was given a Pembroke Welsh corgi puppy named Susan. Such was her attachment to Susan that she reportedly took her on their honeymoon in 1947. Susan died in January 1959. The monarch went on to own dozens of corgis during her lifetime. One, Willow, famously appeared alongside her in the James Bond sketch he recorded for the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics. When Willow fell asleep at the age of 14, the queen lost the last offspring of her original corgi, Susan. According to Reader’s Digest, the Queen loved corgis because of their “energy and loose spirit.” Prince Andrew stepped down from public duties in 2019 after a firestorm of criticism over an interview about his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Earlier this year, she settled with sexual abuse accuser Virginia Giuffre, according to her lawyer, and a US district judge agreed to dismiss her lawsuit against the Duke of York. The prince has repeatedly denied wrongdoing. However, the allegations against Andrew, 62, have dramatically tarnished his public standing.
