Here’s Where Queen Elizabeth’s Corgis Are Going Now that Andrew Has Been Kicked Out of the Royal Lodge
We’ve been watching the royal corgis almost as long as we’ve been keeping an eye on the Windsors themselves. We know Queen Elizabeth II loved her dogs, so when she died in 2022, the world was anxious to discover the fate of her devoted hounds. Luckily, they’ve been in good hands at the Royal Lodge, one of the many grand retreats in the royal family’s stable of homes.
But now that the royal formerly known as Prince Andrew has been stripped of his title and his home (yep, that same Royal Lodge), the world waits once again to learn the fate of Muick and Sandy, the two canine residents caught up in the melee. The former prince, now called Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, is beginning the gargantuan task of packing up the place, so naturally, we all want to know: What’s happening to the corgis?
Ahead, we’ll spill the afternoon tea on where the fluffiest royals will soon lay their heads (in their luxury kennels, natch). We all need a place to call home—corgis included—so keep reading to discover where Elizabeth’s best friends will end up.
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Who currently has custody of Queen Elizabeth’s corgis?
When the queen died three years ago, her son Andrew and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, took custody of Muick and Sandy. Though it’s been a few years, we’ve only just gotten over the sad sight of Elizabeth’s last two faithful friends watching her coffin pass by Windsor Castle at her funeral on Sept. 19, 2022. But we were heartened by the news that the royal pooches were quickly adopted by the pair, so the dogs didn’t face too much upheaval at the time.
Sarah, nicknamed Fergie, even gave an update on the doggy duo at the Creative Women Platform Forum in London in May 2025. “I have her dogs. I have her corgis. Every morning, they come in and go ‘woof woof’ and all that, and I’m sure it’s her talking to me,” she said. “I’m sure it’s her, reminding me she’s still around.”
What will happen to them now that Fergie and Andrew will no longer be royals?
The good news? The pooches will stay with their new family. Buckingham Palace recently confirmed that the doggies will stick with the former York household, telling the Independent, “The corgis will remain with the family.”
The bad news is that, like their adopted parents, they will have to move elsewhere. Even though they’ve been divorced for decades, Fergie and Andrew have been living in the 30-room Windsor house together, and now they’re vacating with Muick and Sandy in tow.
Andrew and Fergie are not expected to continue cohabitating, and the palace did not specify which of the pair would have primary custody. Nor did it indicate whether daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie could be involved in the corgis’ care.
Where will Andrew be moving?
Once he vacates the Royal Lodge, Andrew will likely move 140 miles north to Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, according to experts. Crucially, this estate—and the properties on it—is privately owned by King Charles. That’s in contrast to Windsor Castle and its grounds, which are owned by the Crown Estate and overseen by the British government. A move to the king’s private, rural property gets Andrew out of the public eye and the family out of the sticky situation of having his home subsidized by the Crown.
Sandringham, like Balmoral in Scotland, is the royal family’s much-loved country retreat and the place where they traditionally spend Christmas. Anmer Hall, where Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales, live, is also on the estate, which was purchased by Queen Victoria in 1862. The estate sprawls for 31 square miles and has multiple properties, many of which are rented out.
The BBC speculates that Andrew could live at several of the many Sandringham properties: Wood Farm, where Prince Philip spent his retirement; Park House, the birthplace of Princess Diana; the ironically named York Cottage; or an appropriately dubbed home called The Folly, among other options. All of them, we’re sure, would make a happy countryside base for Muick and Sandy, where they can roam the fields and nearby sandy dunes of Holkham Beach.
What about Fergie?
Reports say she won’t be following Andrew into exile at Sandringham, although she has not revealed where she is going. And while she may have been euphemistically sent to Siberia by the Windsors, her loving canine companions may well want to remain with their adoptive doggy mom.
She often talks about them, even posting a picture of the pair on Instagram on Sept. 8, 2025, writing, “Today marks three years since the death of HM Queen Elizabeth II. Her Majesty will be forever loved, always missed, and never forgotten. Not a day goes by when I don’t think of the kindness I was unstintingly shown in good times and bad. Caring for Her Majesty’s beloved corgis is an honor and a daily reminder of the times we shared together.”
She also revealed that Muick, in particular, sorely grieved the loss of the queen. Appearing on British TV show This Morning in 2023, she said it took Muick a year to get over the loss of his monarch mistress. “There are two corgis that came, big Muick and Sandy, and there were five Norfolk terriers that were there too—seven in all,” she said. “And big Muick is very, very, very demonstrative. He had his tail down to begin with, and then now, a year later … he’s just beginning now to really enjoy [himself].”
Could the corgis move in with Eugenie or Beatrice?
Technically, they could, but it’s unlikely, especially because Eugenie splits her time between Kensington Palace and Portugal, and Beatrice has a house in the Cotswolds, plus an apartment in St. James’s Palace.
The princesses, who have kept their titles and, so far, stayed out of the spotlight during the crisis, both work and are married with young children. Beatrice, 37, is a vice president of the tech company Afiniti and mom to 4-year-old Sienna, baby Athena and 9-year-old stepson Wolfie. Eugenie, 35, is a director of art gallery Hauser & Wirth and cares for 4-year-old August and 2-year-old Ernest.
Are the pooches pampered?
You bet. The queen loved her canine companions and would feed them tidbits (of only the very best ingredients) at the table. They dined on a diet of beef, corn-fed chicken, lamb and rabbit, prepared daily by the palace chefs. Former royal chef Darren McGrady revealed the dogs’ menus were specially chosen and sent down to the kitchens.
“The beef would come in, we would cook it, dice it into really fine pieces and then we did the same with the chicken,” he told Hello! “We’d poach them, and again chop them really, really small to make sure there were no bones so the dogs wouldn’t choke.” He even revealed that if the dogs were sick to their stomachs, or “bunged up,” according to McGrady, “we’d have to add cabbage on the menu, and then other days we’d actually put rice in there for the other way.”
Sounds like love to us!
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Sources:
- Independent: “Buckingham Palace confirms plan for late Queen’s corgis after Andrew stripped of title”
- BBC: “Where might Andrew live on the Sandringham estate?”
- Instagram: “Sarah Ferguson tribute to Queen”
- Independent: “Fergie says Queen’s corgi grieved for a year after monarch’s death”
- Hello!: “Queen Elizabeth’s strict instructions for Andrew Mountbatten Windsor before inheriting her beloved corgis”
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