Zara Tindall Debuts a Surprise New Family Member with a Connection to Cousin Prince William and Kate Middleton

Queen Elizabeth’s granddaughter was spotted with a new furry friend at an equestrian event on Saturday, April 18

Zara Tindall on April 18, 2026.Credit : 

Joe Giddens/PA Images via Getty

Zara Tindall has a new addition to the family!

On Saturday, April 18, Zara — who is Princess Anne’s daughter and Queen Elizabeth’s granddaughter — competed in the FEI Barefoot Retreats Burnham Market International Horse Trials, an equestrian event in Norfolk. (Zara, 44, is an Olympic medal-winning professional equestrian and regularly partakes in events.)

After she took the ring, Zara was spotted walking a new dog around the grounds. The adorable pup, who appeared to be a black cocker spaniel, brings the family’s total to four dogs.

Zara, along with her husband, Mike Tindall, and their children Mia Grace, Lena Elizabeth and Lucas Philip, also have two black labradors (a mother-daughter pair) and a brindle boxer.

Zara Tindall and her new pup on April 18, 2026.Joe Giddens/PA Images via Getty

The Tindalls aren’t the only royal family with a penchant for black cocker spaniels.

During a visit to local Welsh businesses in February, Zara’s cousin-in-law Kate Middleton revealed that she now has two cocker spaniels with husband, Prince William, and their kids Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, 7. She shared the revelation while playing with a cocker spaniel named Barney at the Hiut Denim factory.

“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,” Hiut CEO Johann Von Loeper shared with PEOPLE at the time. “It was a nice moment that broke the ice.”

While petting Barney, Kate was asked how old her family’s dogs are. She answered, “So we’ve got a little puppy, he’s only 8 months, and Orla’s 5.”

Kate Middleton and Prince William with Orla at a charity polo match in 2022.

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Orla — whom they got as a gift from Kate’s brother, James Middleton, in 2020 — has been a staple of the family for the past few years, but speculation began in late 2025 that they may have gotten a new addition, after Orla welcomed a litter of puppies in mid-2025.

William and Kate confirmed the arrival of Orla’s litter with a photo released in June 2025 to celebrate the Prince of Wales’ 43rd birthday. The image, which showed William sitting on the grass with three puppies around his lap, was signed: “Love C, G, C, L, Orla and the puppies!”

The family lost their first dog, Lupo, also a black cocker spaniel, in November 2020. Prince William and Princess Kate had received Lupo from James in December 2011 as a “belated wedding present.”