Corgi puppy given to Queen while Prince Philip was in hospital 'died at the weekend'

The Queen and Prince Philip in 2017. The puppy was a "distraction" for Her Majesty while she was grieving, a royal expert said - PA
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

One of the Queen's two new puppies, given to her while the Duke of Edinburgh was in hospital, has reportedly died.

Fergus, a young corgi puppy, was one of the pair given to the Queen after Prince Philip fell ill in February.

She was apparently left "devastated" after the puppy died over the weekend, a month after the death of her husband aged 99.

A source told The Sun: "The Queen is absolutely devastated. The puppies were brought in to cheer her up during a very difficult period. Everyone concerned is upset as this comes so soon after she lost her husband."

The Queen saw Fergus and a corgi called Muick as a "distraction" while she was grieving, a royal expert had said.

Joe Little, managing editor of Majesty Magazine, said: "The thinking was enough was enough, and that she was getting too old for new dogs and who would look after them when she was gone.

Read more: How to deal with the death of a beloved pet - or help a grieving friend

The Queen with her corgis at Virginia Water in 1973. Her Majesty has a long association with the breed - PA
The Queen with her corgis at Virginia Water in 1973. Her Majesty has a long association with the breed - PA

"But clearly that decision was reversed and, as it turned out, it probably is very fortuitous. I think it's useful to have these puppies in her life now as way of a distraction."

The Queen's love of horses and dogs is well known and, while Prince Philip spent his final period in hospital, it emerged that the Queen had been given the puppies.

Fergus was named after the Queen's uncle, Fergus Bowes-Lyon, who was killed in action in the First World War.

The puppies were the first the Queen had owned that were not direct descendants of a corgi called Susan that she received for her 18th birthday in 1944.

Buckingham Palace declined to comment.

Read more: Queen wrote 'wickedly funny' letters from her corgis to her equerry's dog