Kate Middleton offered a rare glimpse into family life this week, revealing that the household has welcomed a new pet during her visit to textile manufacturers in west Wales on Tuesday.
During her stop at Hiut Denim, a family-run company in Cardigan, the Princess, 44, was clearly taken with Barney, an English cocker spaniel, during her second engagement of the day.
Kneeling down to greet the dog, she exclaimed, “You are lovely!” before telling staff, “We have the same breed of dog.”
When asked about her own pets, she replied, “So we’ve got a little puppy, he’s only eight months, and Orla’s five.”
Kate and her husband, Prince William, live with their children at their Windsor residence, Forest Lodge, which they have described as their long-term family home.
The Princess of Wales during a visit to Melin Tregwynt, a woоllen mill on 3 February
Prince William and Kate Middleton are well known for their love of animals — something shared by their children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
The family’s dog, Orla, joined the household in 2020 after being gifted to them by Kate’s brother, James Middleton. Last May, Orla welcomed a litter of four puppies, which later appeared in a birthday message shared to mark William’s birthday in June.
The message was signed “with love”, followed by the initials of Kate and the children, along with “the puppies” and a paw-print emoji. Before Orla, the family had another much-loved spaniel named Lupo. At the time, reports suggested the family might keep one of the puppies, although this was never officially confirmed.
Orla also appeared alongside Prince William during his appearance on Eugene Levy’s The Reluctant Traveler on Apple TV+ last October. During the episode, William spoke about the family’s previous English Cocker Spaniel, Lupo, who sadly died in November 2020.
Explaining Orla’s connection to their former pet, William said, “So [Orla’s] actually the niece of our other dog, Lupo, who sadly we lost in lockdown.” Levy then asked, “Were you there? When it happened?” to which William replied, “Yeah we were all there sadly, it was very sad.”
William and Kate Middleton later confirmed Lupo’s passing in a tribute shared on their Instagram account, writing: “Very sadly last weekend our dear dog, Lupo, passed away. He has been at the heart of our family for the past nine years and we will miss him so much.”
Kate Middleton highlighted a fashion label once propelled into the spotlight by Meghan Markle during her visit to textile manufacturers in the scenic surroundings of west Wales on Tuesday.
The Princess of Wales, 44, first travelled to Melin Tregwynt, a historic woollen mill set in a secluded wooded valley along the Pembrokeshire Coast. There, she joined craftspeople at the looms, learning more about the traditional double-cloth weaving technique and following the steps involved in producing woven blankets.
She later visited Hiut Denim, a company that previously gained international attention thanks to Meghan Markle. The Duchess of Sussex famously wore the brand’s high-waisted skinny jeans during a visit to Cardiff Castle with Prince Harry in 2018 — her first official royal engagement in Wales — helping bring the label global recognition.
The company’s founders later described the surge in attention as the “Meghan Markle effect,” previously telling the BBC, “When Meghan Markle wore our jeans we had the world’s press on our doorstep, so our grand masters, as we call them, have become used to being featured in things… it’s good for business.”
The visit marks the latest in Kate Middleton’s ongoing efforts to support British textile makers, following a trip last month to a tartan-weaving studio in Stirling. Throughout 2025, she also visited textile producers across Carmarthenshire, Suffolk, Kent and County Tyrone, increasingly using her platform to showcase the industry.
The Princess also has personal ties to the sector, as her paternal ancestors owned William Lupton & Co, a Leeds-based woollen manufacturing and merchant business.
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