Queen Elizabeth was very proud to have accidentally created a new dog breed through a “secret liaison” between two royal pets, Dame Prue Leith has revealed.
Queen Elizabeth with one of beloved pet dogs at Sandringham House in 1970
The dorgi hybrid occurred in the 1970s when one of the Queen’s corgis, Tiny, had a private moment with a dachsund named Pipkin, who belonged to the monarch’s sister Princess Margaret, and the two siblings were so enamoured with the pups the tryst produced that they began breeding the pooches.
Great British Bake Off judge Prue can recall a meeting with the Queen and her husband Prince Philip at Buckingham Palace years ago where the late monarch shared her pride at having played a part in creating a new breed of dog that was officially recognised by The Kennel Club, the UK organisation that runs the Crufts international dog show.
Appearing on the Making A Scene podcast, Prue revealed: “One day I was asked to lunch at Buckingham Palace with Prince Philip and the Queen and they had two or three other people from the Palace and then they had six guests. I think this was the idea of getting the royals to meet the people. There was an Olympic sportsman, the Archbishop of Canterbury and various people – so there was a mixture of posh people and ordinary people.
“This flunky told us at the beginning it’s not the done thing to initiate a conversation with the royals. Of course, I forgot that.
“So the Queen came in and she was surrounded by little dogs. I immediately said, ‘Oh, how wonderful ma’am you’ve brought the corgis to lunch.’ She said, ‘They’re not corgis, they’re dorgis.’ Then we had a long conversation about her breeding programme and how one of her dogs had a secret liaison with a dachshund, and so the produce of this union was one half corgi, half dachshund and so she adored this dorgi and so she started to breed dorgis. She was very excited because she said The Kennel Club had just agreed that this was a recognised breed.”
TV chef Prue, 85, admits it is a cherished memory and it came from a conversation she would never have instigated if she didn’t decide to ignore royal protocol.
She added: “So I had this proper conversation with her about something completely you don’t think you’re going to talk about to the royals. I would never have done if I wasn’t just clumsy.”
During her lifetime, Queen Elizabeth – who passed away in September 2022 at the age of 96 – was a committed dog lover and had many corgis and dorgis with a variety of fun names that included Cider, Rum, Berry, Candy, Brandy, Chipper, Harris, Pickles, Piper, Tinker, Vulcan and Fergus.
The former monarch was also Patron of the Dogs Trust dog welfare organization in the UK and her children and grandchildren inherited her love of canine companions.
King Charles and his wife Queen Camilla have a Lagotto Romagnolo named Snuff and a rescue dog called Mole as pets.
Charles’ son Prince William and his wife Princess Catherine have a pet cocker spaniel named Orla, who is the niece of their late dog Lupo, who passed away in November 2020.