R eports of the Queen’s corgi room delighted doting dog owners last week. Personally frugal, Her Majesty tended to spoil her four-legged family. Reading about the royal pack’s Buckingham Palace bedsit, with elevated wicker baskets to keep away draughts, and dogs’ dinners of chef-prepared rabbit and beef, served in silver bowls, was a flicker of joy during a dark week of news. It’s a relatable side of royalty, since many fellow owners have long been decorating for canine comfort, and some designers have devised palatial creations for their clients’ pets.

At the south Devon home of the denim designer Donna Ida Thornton and her husband, Robert Walton, the family chihuahuas are majestically indulged. The couple’s Jacobean manor house, Langdon Court, features a chihuahua dormitory for Emilio,

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