Sarah Ferguson. Pascal Le Segretain/amfAR/Getty Images for amfAR
Sarah Ferguson continues to love her role as a dog mom to the late Queen Elizabeth II’s famous corgis.
“Wishing you and all your furry friends a Happy #InternationalDogDay 🐶,” The Duchess of York, 64, captioned a pic sweet snap of herself playing with her two pups via Instagram on Monday, August 26. “For all the unconditional love, loyalty, and joy they bring into our lives, Sandy and Muick will be getting an extra treat on their special day!”
In the photo, Ferguson wore a green velvet blazer and multi-colored scarf while lying down in the grass alongside Sandy and Muick, the last two corgis Elizabeth adopted prior to her death in September 2022.
Ferguson and her ex-husband, Elizabeth’s son Prince Andrew, took custody of the dogs following the late monarch’s passing. The former couple both attended Elizabeth’s September 2022 funeral, during which Sandy and Muick were seen standing in the quadrangle of Windsor Castle as her casket arrived.
Sandy and Muick were originally gifted to Elizabeth by Ferguson, Andrew and their daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, in 2021. Though Elizabeth owned over 30 dogs throughout her life, she reportedly had four — including Sandy and Muick, one dorgi (a corgi and dachshund mix) and a cocker spaniel — when she died.
While greeting mourners in September 2022, Prince William stated that her remaining dogs were “being looked after very well” and were being “spoiled rotten,” per Sky News.
Ferguson has lived up to her nephew’s words by sharing several corgi updates with fans. She told The Telegraph in October 2022 that taking care of the pooches was a “big honor,” referring to the corgis as “national treasures.”
Referring to Sandy and Muick’s dynamic with her and Andrew’s five Norfolk terriers, she joked: “They all balance out, the carpet moves as I move but I’ve got used to it now.”
During a July 2023 episode of her “Tea Talks With the Duchess and Sarah” podcast, Ferguson recalled taking her furry friends on a walk down a path Elizabeth used to take her dogs on.
“I was chatting to them saying, ‘Now where do we go?’ And they were showing me the way,” she shared. “There was a little woodland walk that was made especially for the queen and [it was] just so special. It was actually very wonderful to have a moment to really remember [her] because this time last year the queen would have been going to Balmoral [Castle] and we would have walked exactly where we walked yesterday together. And then the queen would have said, ‘See you up in Scotland.’”
Earlier this year, Ferguson — who is currently battling skin cancer — exclusively told Us Weekly that all seven of her dogs were “doing very well,” adding, “They’re all very lovely and very, very loved!”
Ferguson also stated that taking care of the pets was a difficult but rewarding job. “It’s quite a lot of work, but it’s work I love,” she told Us in May. “I have many dog people around me who also love them and love to take care of them, so I can share and I do share.”