Prince William Was Once Cornered by an Attack Dog When He Was Mistaken for an Intruder at Sandringham

"It could have gone horribly wrong if he was bitten..."

Prince William
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  • Several years ago, when he was younger, Prince William was cornered by a snarling guard dog on the grounds of the Queen's estate in Sandringham, according to a new report.
  • Now-retired police officer Jon Chandler shared the story, which involved the police dog he was then the handler of, who mistook Will for an intruder one night when he was out for a walk on the property.
  • According to Chandler, the prince "took it in good jest" and the dog, fortunately, didn't attempt to bite the royal.

You would assume that members of the royal family are allowed to roam around wherever they want at royal residences. Unfortunately for Prince William, however, at least one royal guard dog missed that memo, it seems.

In a new interview with Eastern Daily Press, now-retired police officer Jon Chandler shared a story involving the police dog he was a handler for and Prince William that went down at the Queen's Sandringham Estate years ago. The short version: Will was taking a late night stroll around the property when the dog picked up his scent, assumed he was an intruder on the grounds, and cornered him until the handler was able to make it to the scene.

"I had a particularly interesting night when I was walking my dog off the lead around the grounds and he chased after the future king of England," Chandler explained. "It was late at night and Prince William was walking towards the garages and the dog picked up his scent and went charging after him."

Luckily for everyone involved, Will (a lifelong dog lover himself) handled the situation perfectly and no real damage was done.

"He took it in good jest. He was only young then," Chandler said of Will's reaction to the incident. "It could have gone horribly wrong if he was bitten, but fortunately the dog did what it was supposed to do, and just stood back and barked at him. It was a memorable night."

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Kayleigh Roberts
Weekend Editor

Kayleigh Roberts is a freelance writer and editor with more than 10 years of professional experience. Her byline has appeared in Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, The Atlantic, Allure, Entertainment Weekly, MTV, Bustle, Refinery29, Girls’ Life Magazine, Just Jared, and Tiger Beat, among other publications. She's a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.