Royals with animals: The most adorable moments caught on camera

Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened - the heavy but true words of an oft-quoted French poet, Anatole France.

The Royal Family have given plenty of romantic moments over the years, but nothing captures the hearts and minds of people all over the world like the sweet memories made with their pets and animals.

Let's take a look at some of the cutest moments caught on camera.

The most adorable moments between royals and animals

The Queen and her corgis - the start of a life-long love story

For her historic 70-year reign, there were many things that were unique to Queen Elizabeth II, including her colourful wardrobe and notorious dry wit. However, another huge focus throughout her lifetime was her love of the Pembroke Welsh Corgi dog breed.

Her Majesty had over 30 corgis throughout her lifetime, with her affection for the breed starting at a young age.

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Charles and Camilla get ruffled

Sure, the United States and the United Kingdom share a special relationship. But in 2015, the emblem of the USA - a bald eagle - nearly caused a (hilarious) ruckus as the majestic bird took flight and left the now King Charles and Queen Camilla looking rather startled.

Orla, William and Kate's other royal baby

The Prince and Princess of Wales have their famous litter - Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis - but they've also welcomed some four-legged family members over the years.

Loyally by William and Kate's side during a stroll in 2020 was their black cocker spaniel, Orla.

Orla is such a sweetheart that, in October 2024, after it was revealed the Princess of Wales was officially cancer-free, her brother, James Middleton, told Hello! that Orla had been a great source of comfort for his sister during her chemotherapy.

Kate meets Seamus

In 2023, the Princess of Wales proudly took part in her first St Patrick's Day parade since taking on the title of Colonel of the Irish Guards.

Dressed for the occasion in a shamrock green ensemble, Catherine also got to meet the gentle giant Irish wolfhound, Seamus. The dog is the official mascot of the Irish Guards - and he took to the new colonel with great affection.

Prince George meets a Bilby

In 2014, Prince William, Kate Middleton and a young Prince George went on their first major overseas tour as a family of three.

The three went down under for a three-week tour of Australia and New Zealand, mirroring the trip Charles and Diana took a young William on back in 1983.

During one adorable moment, George was introduced to an animal he wouldn't come across in the fields of Berkshire or the greenery of Norfolk. He met a Bilby, a small, marsupial mammal native to Australia.

The Queen and Prince Philip feed an elephant

She reigned for 70 years. He was by her side for most of that. And in 2017, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip had the pleasure of meeting one of their largest royal subjects ever - a huge elephant called Donna.

The royal couple looked in their element feeding the jolly elephant during their visit to ZSL Whipsnade Zoo.

Kate meets a little lamb

In 2017, the Princess of Wales got Stinky. Or, should we say, she got acquainted with a sweet little lamb called Stinky.

The Berkshire girl proved she was still a country bumpkin at heart as she wasted no time getting stuck in feeding the lamb a bottle. The adorable scene was in aid of the Farms for City Children charity, which pushes for more agricultural awareness for youngsters who aren't native to nature.

Meeting the Meerkats

In 2019, Prince Edward and Duchess Sophie took their two children - Lady Louise and James, Viscount Severn - to a wholesome day at the Wild Place Project, Bristol Zoo.

Prince William charms a snake

We've heard of Prince Charming, but never Prince Snake Charming.

During their tour of the Ulster University Magee Campus in Londonderry in 2021, Prince William decided to flex and show off for Kate Middleton. The brave Prince was seen holding a snake as Kate looked on proudly.

George and his first sibling, Lupo

In 2016, to celebrate Prince George turning three-years-old, proud parents William and Kate shared new images of their firstborn son with another of their beloved family members, their first dog, Lupo.

In one of the heart-warming snaps, George is seen feeding Lupo in the gardens of Anmer Hall, Norfolk.

Lupo had another sweet family connection - he was bred from Ella, James Middleton's beloved canine companion.

Kate plus eight (legs)

During a trip to Northern Ireland, the Princess of Wales proved how game she was to embrace all sorts of animals - even the less typically cute ones.

Kate grinned as she held a hairy tarantula - which, coincidentally shared a name with her daughter - while William seemed to keep his distance.

In a picture Kensington Palace posted on social media, they confirmed the spider's name, writing "A surprise guest appearance from Charlotte the tarantula."

William and Kate meet an important political figure

During their royal visit to Ireland in 2020, the Prince and Princess of Wales carried out some of the typical diplomatic duties expected - including meeting with a most important figure. Not the President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins and his wife, Sabina, but their scene-stealing Bernese Mountain dog, Brod.

Brod has met many an important political figure in the past, including France's Emannuel Macron, and the gentle giant is always full of affection.

Meghan falls for puppy-dog eyes

And they called it puppy love, indeed.

Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, was utterly smitten with Minnie, a one-year-old Jack Russell terrier, while touring the Mayhew Animal Home in London's Kensal Green in 2019.

After Meghan's adorable moment, reports at the time stated she inspired over 100 people to call in enquiring about adopting. A win for everyone!

A young Edward with an early best friend

As the youngest child of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip turned 18 in 1982, he upped his already impressive eligible bachelor status by posing with a sweet, sweet pup named Frances.

The young Prince posed with his loyal companion on the grounds of Buckingham Palace.

More puppy love

When on their fabulous overseas tours, one could almost forget that the royals are actually working. And when part of their duties involve meeting German Shepherd police training puppies, it really does solidify their jobs as the dream career.

The smitten pair were all smiles as the young puppies melted into their embrace.

Typical brother bravado

Things between the siblings might have soured since Harry's infamous exit from royal life and the publication of his memoir, Spare, but in 2010, they were just your typical bantering brothers.

William and Harry were joking around holding a daunting African Rock Python during their trip to Botswana.

Feeding a giraffe

There's truly no animal that the royals don't show an affinity towards. Their love of dogs (like the Queen's corgis) was well known, and nearly all of them are prolific horse-riders, but Duchess Sophie, Prince Edward and their son, James, got friendly with a giraffe back in 2019.

Looking completely at ease, the young royal demonstrated his connection to animals as he gamely fed the giant animal some leaves.

Harry goes in for a smooch

From Queen Camilla's terriers that she had woven on her coronation gown to Queen Elizabeth's corgis, dogs and royals have always paired together like a crown and sceptre.

And Prince Harry is no different. He didn't bother standing on airs and graces as he got to his knees to bring a dog close to his face.

As for his own pups at home, he talked about adopting a rescue with Meghan in his memoir, Spare. He wrote, "Meg and I named her Pula. The Setswana word for rain. And good fortune. Many mornings I'd wake to find myself surrounded by beings I loved, who loved me, and depended on me, and I thought I simply had no right to this much good fortune. Work challenges aside, this was happiness. Life was good."

Back to basics

The royals. They're just like us.

Okay, maybe not always. But in one adorable memory caught on camera, it's refreshing to see Queen Elizabeth II keeping things simple and wholesome, playing around in the woods with her youngest son, Prince Edward, and their little Corgis scampering alongside them.

Dogs with purpose

Prince William and Kate Middleton met some important pups during their royal tour of Pakistan in 2019.

Meeting with two golden Labrador puppies named Salto and Sky, the dogs are part of a program funded by the UK which trains the animals to identify explosive devices.

Dogs with important jobs, and a touching connection for Prince William to his mother, Princess Diana's work with landmines.

Kate feeds a big baby

We know Kate Middleton is the most hands on mother - she likes to bake her kids a homemade cake each year for their birthdays! - but she dealt with a baby of a different matter in 2016.

While visiting the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC) at the Panbari reserve forest in the state of Assam, India, the now Princess of Wales displayed her mother's touch helping to feed a big, cuddly elephant.

Charles leads a different kind of march

As the heir-apparent for a staggering 70 years and as the now King, Charles III is used to leading plenty of ceremonial marches. However, in 1999, he led a march of the penguins during a visit to Sea Lion Island in the Falkland Isles.

Queen Camilla gets a kiss

Now, we know that royal protocol dictates one should never really initiate physical contact with a member of the Royal Family, but when the offender is this cute, we're sure they can overlook it.

During a sweet visit, an adorable dog which, appropriately, appears to be a young King Charles Spaniel, took a liking to Her Majesty, giving her an affectionate nose kiss.

William and Kate down under

In 2014, the now Prince and Princess of Wales took a three-week tour of Australia and New Zealand.

And, fittingly, no trip down under could be complete without meeting some of the signature wildlife of the land - such as a kangaroo.

The young royals looked chipper as they got familiar with a tree kangaroo during a visit to a Sydney zoo.

Mother-daughter bonding over horses

Queen Elizabeth's love of horses lasted her entire life, with her reported first pony gifted to her when she was just three. Riding even when her health was failing, she also bred winning racehorses. Princess Anne inherited this love - and became the first royal to ever compete in the Olympics when she took part in the equestrian event at the 1976 Montreal Games.

With this adorable moment, the mother-daughter duo embrace Her Majesty's horse, Estimate, the noble steed who won the Gold Cup on Ladies Day at Royal Ascot 2013.

The Wales family meet a Koala

Fun fact: Koalas can sleep up to 18 hours a day. So perhaps this little fellow thought he was dreaming when he got to meet the Prince and Princess of Wales in 2014.

Prince William and Kate Middleton were introduced to the famous Australian animal during their three-week tour down under. And having brought their young son, Prince George, with them (when he was just one-years-old), we can only imagine they were jealous of an 18-hour sleep day...

The Queen meets a Corgi that isn't one of hers

Having owned more than 30 corgis in her life, you'd think Her Majesty might have got tired of the breed. But, apparently not.

What's most adorable about this moment from 2015 is the huge grin being flashed by the usually hard-to-read monarch.

The late Queen was introduced to the corgi during the opening of the Mary Tealby dog kennels at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home in London.

Panda-monium for the young princesses

For most young children, a trip to the zoo might involve seeing a few monkeys. If you were the future Queen and her only sister, Princess Margaret, a simple trip to the zoo turned into meeting an actual, real-life panda. The adorable moment dates back to 1939.

Queen Camilla meets some well-dressed donkeys

One wonders what the protocol is for having a donkey upstage a royal with their own fabulous wardrobe?

Queen Camilla didn't mind having the limelight stolen when she met Ollie the Donkey and Harry the mini Shetland pony at a charity event in aid of working horses and donkeys back in 2018.

While Ollie's flower crown is certainly eye-catching, did nobody tell him royals don't wear their tiaras during daytime events?

Harry and Meghan meet the same animal years apart

The love story of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle may truly be one for the ages, and another adorable chapter to add is that the couple both met a rare and unusual animal (with very different reactions!)

The animal in question is the Echidna. Spiky, spiny anteaters, the unusual creatures live in Australia and New Guinea.

What's it all about, Alfie?

Prince William and Kate Middleton have been living a fairy tale since their magical 2011 wedding... but along came a rival for her affection. And his name was Alfie.

But fear not, royal lovers, for Alfie was an adorable cockapoo. Kate was pictured snuggling up to the heart-melting puppy during a trip to Lancashire in 2022.

The pup also had a connection to a shared cause of the pair - mental health. Alfie was being trained as a therapy dog to support patients and colleagues at the East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust.

A poignant, and perfect, farewell

September 2022 marked the end of an era - the death of Queen Elizabeth II. After 70 years on the throne - and over 30 dogs to her name in that time - there was no way the commemorations wouldn't involve a nod to Her Majesty's life-long love of animals.

And fans across the world reacted when her surviving pooches were brought out by staff at Windsor Castle to take in the arrival of Her Majesty's coffin before the private committal service.

A moment both adorable and heart-breaking for anyone who has ever truly loved a pet.