Catherine shared the news during an official visit to West Wales, offering a rare personal insight that many observers had been waiting to hear.

Princess Catherine confirmed the arrival of the puppy while visiting family-run textile company Huit Denim in Cardigan on Tuesday, during her second engagement of the day.

As she toured the workshop and spoke with staff, the Princess was drawn to a cocker spaniel named Barney. Kneeling down to stroke the dog, she remarked: “You are lovely!” before telling staff, “We have the same breed of dog.”

When asked, “How old are yours?”, Catherine replied: “So we’ve got a little puppy, he’s only eight months, and Orla’s five.”

The moment was later confirmed by Huit Denim CEO Johann Von Loeper, who spoke to People about the interaction.

“She had a rather long chat with my fiancée about our dog, about how she also has cocker spaniels and that hers is the same age as ours,” he said.

“It was a nice moment that broke the ice,” Von Loeper added.

Rumours That Have Circulated for Months

Speculation about a new Wales family puppy first surfaced last May, after reports emerged that Orla—the couple’s black cocker spaniel gifted by Catherine’s younger brother James in 2020—had welcomed a litter of four puppies.

In June, Kensington Palace appeared to subtly acknowledge the news while celebrating Prince William’s 43rd birthday on June 21. A candid photo showed William sitting on the grass with three puppies climbing across his lap, accompanied by the message: “Love C, G, C, L, Orla and the puppies!”

Orla’s Place in the Wales Family

Orla, whose name means “golden princess” in Celtic, has become a familiar figure in both private and public family moments. She has appeared in Princess Charlotte’s seventh birthday portrait, at a polo match in 2022, and in a video shared by Catherine in 2024 during her cancer treatment.

She was also seen alongside Prince William in his recent interview with comedian Eugene Levy for the Apple TV travel series The Reluctant Traveller.

During that interview, William spoke about Orla’s connection to the couple’s first dog, Lupo.

“So [Orla’s] actually the niece of our other dog, Lupo, who sadly we lost in lockdown,” William said.

Levy asked: “Were you there? When it happened?” to which William replied: “Yeah we were all there sadly, it was very sad.”