prince harry meghan markle adoption

Prince Harry & Duchess Meghan's hands-on approach to welcoming new canine family member

The Beagle Freedom project released a new tweet

Senior Lifestyle & Fashion Writer
October 4, 2022

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex recently welcomed a new companion into the Montecito home they share with their children, Archie and Lilibet.

LOOK: 6 beloved royal dog breeds: Corgis, Labs, Spaniels and more

Harry and Meghan adopted a seven-year-old Beagle named Mamma Mia from the Beagle Freedom Project, an organisation that rescues and rehomes animals used in experimental research. The sweet pup was reportedly rescued along with 4,000 other Beagles by federal authorities in Virginia last month.

WATCH: Inside the lives of the royal family's dogs

Taking to Twitter on Tuesday, the Beagle Freedom Project spoke out about the Sussexes surprise request to rehome a rescue dog.

The organisation also paid tribute to the late Queen Elizabeth II. "Recently, we received a call from Meghan & Harry inquiring about adopting from us!" read the tweet.

SEE: 13 royals and their beloved pet dogs in photo

The Beagle Freedom Project shared the message via their Twitter account

"Their adoption has brought such light to our mission and for that we are so grateful. Sending our deepest condolences to the family on the loss of Queen Elizabeth II."

Twitter users were quick to reply to the heartwarming thread sharing the details of Harry and Meghan's adoption process. "Keep up the good work. From a beagle mum in Australia! It breaks my heart out beautiful breed are used for such horrible human treatment," wrote one fan, as another penned: "That’s incredible!"

MORE: Meghan Markle’s luxury recording studio built for her by Spotify revealed

SEE: Meghan Markle's rarely-seen Instagram posts inside her ultra chic home before meeting Prince Harry

A third Twitter user sweetly shared: "Mamma Mia is gorgeous and hope she’s happy in her new home with Prince Harry & Meghan."

Speaking about Mamma Mia's rescue, Shannon Keith, an animal rights lawyer who runs the Beagle Freedom Project told KTTV: "Mama Mia ran to [Harry and Meghan] and we had never seen her do that with anyone before. She just knew that this was her people."

The Duchess is an avid animal lover

"Prince Harry sat on the couch, and she ran to him and put her paws on his knees. Her tail was wagging a million miles a minute," she added.

The new addition to the family joins fellow beagle Guy and a black Labrador named Pula at Prince Harry and Meghan's home in Montecito, California.

Prince Harry shares his wife's love for animals

Shannon also told the LA times that Meghan called her on her cell with no Caller ID. The Duchess simply said: "Hey Shannon, this is Meghan," before engaging in a 30 minute conversation about the couple's interest in rescuing.

Make sure you never miss a ROYAL story! Sign up to The Royal Explainer newsletter to receive your weekly dose of royal features and other exclusive content straight to your inbox.

Sign up to HELLO Daily! for the best royal, celebrity and lifestyle coverage

Email Address

By entering your details, you are agreeing to HELLO! Magazine User Data Protection Policy. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information, please click here.

More Parenting

See more