Queen Elizabeth II Has a New Dog Named Lissy—and She’s Not a Corgi

The cocker spaniel is an outlier in the Queen’s pet history.
By Chad Taylor February 04, 2022 Advertisement Pin FB More Tweet Email Send Text Message Print
Queen Elizabeth II and a portrait of a Cocker Spaniel Credit: ndriano_cz / Adobe Stock / Max Mumby / Indigo / Getty

Queen Elizabeth II has reversed course on a yearslong, self-imposed ban on new royal dogs, welcoming another furry friend into the Royal home. In a surprising move, however, the Queen—most famously associated with corgis and dorgis—has picked a cocker spaniel as her newest best friend.

The 4-year-old cocker is listed under the pedigree name Wolferton Drama, but to Her Majesty, the little dog is known simply as Lissy, which is a diminutive version of Elizabeth. Not only is Lissy a rarity for the Queen due to her breed, but on Jan. 4 the red-and-white pup was crowned winner at the Kennel Club Cocker Spaniel Championship, giving the Queen her first champion.

Queen Elizabeth has long been a lover of dogs, having owned at least one Pembroke Welsh corgi at any given time between 1933 and 2018. She's owned an estimated 30 of the dogs over her long life. All of them were said to be descendants of her original corgi, Susan, who was given to the Queen as an 18th birthday gift. She received Fergus and Muick—not relatives of Susan—last March.

RELATED: A Timeline of Queen Elizabeth's Lifelong Love of Corgis

Fergus died suddenly in March, and the public figured the Queen's remaining animals would be her last, but Lissy has proved once again that true pet lovers can't ever really stop loving pets.