- Meghan Markle and Prince Harry rescued a 7-year-old beagle named Mamma Mia.
- Mamma Mia is one of 4,000 dogs who was freed from a breeding for animal-testing site in Virginia.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have added a new member to their family: a 7-year-old beagle.
Markle, 41, and Harry, 37, adopted one of the 4,000 beagles that were rescued from a breeding facility owned by Envigo RMS in Virginia in early August. The dogs would have become test subjects for US drug experiments, as Reuters reported.
The facility was set to be shut down after the Department of Justice accused Envigo RMS of animal cruelty in May. Envigo denied the allegations, but its parent company Inotiv Inc ordered it to shut down in June. Envigo and the DOJ then reached a settlement with no fines in July, and the DOJ announced the dogs would be transferred for medical treatment and adoption on July 18.
Animal-rescue organizations quickly organized to remove the dogs from the facility in Cumberland, Virginia, including the Beagle Freedom Project, where the Duke and Duchess of Sussex found their dog.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Markle called Shannon Keith, the animal rights attorney who runs the Beagle Freedom Project, looking for a dog. She told the LA Times that the duchess simply identified herself as Meghan, so Keith had no idea she was speaking to a member of the royal family throughout their 30-minute call.
A spokesperson for the couple told the LA Times that Markle had previously rescued a beagle, and she and Harry decided it was time to adopt another when they saw the news about Envigo.
Markle and Harry visited the home in the San Fernando Valley where Keith runs the Beagle Freedom Project after hours, with no cameras, to meet the approximately 25 dogs under Keith's care, including 7-year-old Mamma Mia and her eight 7-week old puppies, according to the LA Times. Mia and her puppies first went to Maryland before coming to California, the outlet also reported.
The Beagle Freedom Project shared a video of Mia and her puppies in August, noting that Mia was only used for breeding at Envigo.
Keith told the LA Times that Markle made it clear quickly that she wanted to take Mia — not one of her puppies — home when she and Harry arrived at the home, saying they didn't want "a Christmas puppy" and that they wanted to help an older dog.
Mia joins Guy, the beagle Markle previously rescued, and Pula, a dog Harry and Markle adopted together, according to the Daily Mail.
Speaking to the LA Times, Keith divulged that Harry already seemed attuned to Mamma Mia's needs within moments of meeting her. As the duke and duchess prepared to take Mia home to their house in Montecito, California, Harry stopped because he sensed Mia needed something, Keith told the LA Times.
"He's just like, 'Well, we can't leave yet because there's something in that back house she needs. Does she have a favorite toy or something?'" Keith told the LA Times of the prince.
They then inspected a box of toys, where Mia immediately grabbed a stuffed fox that had kept her company during her travels from Maryland to California.