It's a sad day for Queen Elizabeth. Her last corgi, Whisper, has passed away, the Daily Mail reports.
Whisper became the Queen's main corgi companion after the death of her other corgi, Willow, whose passing in April marked the end of an era. Willow was the last in the line descended from the Queen's original corgi, Susan, who was a gift to the Queen in 1944.
The Queen adopted Whisper in 2016, and both Whisper and Willow had been her faithful friends for the past two years. They traveled with her between homes, and Whisper reportedly even followed the Queen from room to room throughout Buckingham Palace.
"Whisper was a friendly chap and followed her everywhere," a source told the Daily Mail. "The Queen had quickly become very attached to the dog."
The Queen is famous for her love of corgis, a legacy that she inherited from her father, King George VI. But with the death of Whisper, Queen Elizabeth no longer owns any members of her beloved breed. She does, however, have two dorgis — dachshund and corgi crosses — and some Labradors.
Whisper was 12 years old.
Queen Elizabeth is known for her love of Pembroke corgis, an undeniably cute and short-legged dog breed.
The 92-year-old monarch has owned and bred corgis since she was just a princess.
People reports that it was the Queen's father, King George VI, who introduced the breed into the royal family in 1933 with a corgi named Dookie.
The Queen received her first corgi, Susan, as a gift in 1944, and the rest was history.
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She's owned multiple corgis ever since, and until recently, nearly all of them could trace their lineage back to the original Susan. The Queen became an expert on the breed.
Five years ago, the Queen decided to stop breeding corgis. She was worried about tripping over the puppies, and she reportedly didn't know who would care for them when she was gone.
As of 2016, she had only one corgi left who was descended from Susan — a pooch named Willow.
That year, she adopted a second corgi, Whisper. Despite saying that she didn't want any more dogs, the Queen made an exception for then 9-year-old Whisper after his owner, Bill Fenwick, a former gamekeeper for the Queen, passed away.
Together, Whisper and Willow were the Queen's loyal companions, accompanying her on trips and following her throughout the palace.
Earlier this year, Willow passed away, leaving the Queen with no more descendants of her beloved Susan. But she still had loyal Whisper, who became the new favorite.
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But a few weeks ago, Whisper became extremely ill, a source told the Daily Mail. Veterinarians were called to Windsor Castle.
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Sadly, Whisper passed away on October 19. He was 12 years old.
Following Whisper's death, the Queen is left without a single corgi.
She does, however, still have Candy and Vulcan, two dorgis — dachshund and corgi crosses.
She also has some Labradors, kenneled mainly at Sandringham.
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Nonetheless, the loss of Whisper is heartbreaking for the Queen. Rest in peace, Whisper!
