James Middleton has jokingly revealed the prerequisite Prince William had to meet before marrying his sister Catherine.
The 37-year-old younger sibling of the now-Princess of Wales made the comments in an interview with Hello! magazine.
As a famous lover of pooches, James was asked whether it was ‘prerequisite for Prince William to like dogs before he could join the Middleton family?’.
According to the outlet, James – who turns 38 next week – reportedly smiled before revealing his answer.
He suggested he was satisfied with the Prince’s appreciation for the animals, saying: ‘He had a long love of dogs. He had a very strong relationship with a black lab called Wigeon growing up, so he knew the powers of what dogs can do.’
James, who lives in a sprawling farmhouse in Bucklebury, Berkshire, with his wife Alizée Thevenet and their son Inigo, currently has six dogs.
During the interview, during which he invited the publication into his home, he spoke about how his small family has developed their own bonds with his beloved pet dogs.
He shared heartwarming details about his son, including the hilarious anecdote about how the tot spent the first year of his life thinking he was a dog.
Catherine (pictured, left) is seen with her younger brother James (pictured, right), who said he knew Prince William ‘knew the powers of what dogs can do’
James said the 18-month-old fell ‘in absolute love’ with his golden retriever, Isla, so much so that the tot at one point thought he was a dog and spent a year of his life on ‘all fours’.
In a video shared to YouTube, James recounted the ‘entertaining’ tale.
‘Well I think he spent the first year of his life thinking he was a dog – being on all fours’ said James.
‘It was quite entertaining to watch’. He then joked that Inigo’s first word could have been “woof!”
‘He absolutely loves the dogs’ he continued. ‘In particular Isla… she’s the youngest dog we have… he is just in absolute love with her’.
The doting father also spoke on how close the pup and tot were, and that Inigo can barely get his day started without setting his eyes on Isla.
The Princess of Wales (pictured, left) often sees her siblings, according to her brother James (she is seen with the Prince of Wales in London in March this year)
He revealed how Inigo asks to see the pooches every morning, when he ‘just hugs’ them.
James described how Inigo is now the same ‘head height’ as Isla when she’s seated, making the pup a perfect canine companion for his young son.
He discussed how Inigo will put his arm around the dog’s neck to give her a hug, before the pooch responds by giving his a ‘lick on his face’.
According to the 37-year-old, he is ‘delighted’ that his beloved canine brood has ‘accepted’ his son into the fold.
However James insisted that he would never ‘force’ his own love for dogs onto Inigo and wanted his interest in hounds to pique naturally.
He said he was conscious that he wanted Inigo to love dogs ‘for what they are’ and build his own relationship with them, noting that the tot cannot just ‘absorb’ his father’s ‘love for dogs and animals’.
James has six dogs in total, of which four are named Zulu, Inka, Luna and Nala, and are all cocker spaniels. He’s also a proud pet father to his golden retrievers, Mabel and Isla.
His hounds are aged between two and 14, while his precious dog Ella, who James revealed ‘saved’ his life when he had clinical depression, passed away at age 15.
James Middleton shared heartwarming details about his son, including how the toddler once thought he was a dog (Pictured: James Middleton with his son Inigo, wife Alizée Thevenet and two of their dogs on holiday)
James said the 18-month-old fell ‘in absolute love’ with golden retriever, Isla, so much so that the tot at one point thought he was a dog and spent a year of his life on ‘all fours’
James revealed that his son Inigo loves to see the family dogs every morning, and often gives Isla a hug and a squeeze
Elsewhere in the interview with the publication, James spoke on what it was like living near his family and having his sister, the Princess of Wales and Princess William live just 30 minutes away.
James, who was born in Reading hospital and has lived around the Berkshire countryside all his life, said his parents were just ‘five minutes up the road’.
He said it was ‘lovely’ because he sees them often, adding that his siblings – sisters Catherine and Pippa – are all within 30 minutes of each other.
‘Pippa and James are about 20 minutes away and Katherine and William are about 30 minutes away’.
‘We are a close family and we are fortunate that we see lots of each other and my parents play a good role in getting us all together in that respect’.
