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Camilla said she wished she could smuggle the eight-week-old Cavalier King Charles spaniel away in her handbag when Flora joined a canine delegation at a Clarence House reception celebrating the 160th anniversary of Battersea Dogs and Cats Home.

The future Queen Consort appeared in her element, patting and stroking the dogs, which she said were “so sweet.” But she was particularly taken by Flora. “I can’t imagine she’ll be stuck for a home for very long,” she consoled herself.

She urged anyone looking for a pet to adopt a rescue dog or cat after a spike in abandoned animals following the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Duchess, who adopted both of her terriers, Bluebell and Beth, in 2011 and 2012 respectively from Battersea, acknowledged how easy it was to visit the charity home and leave with a pet, adding: “I’ve done it twice.”

She said: “There are, due to Covid, a lot of dogs and cats now at Battersea that need a home so if I could appeal to everybody listening, all of your friends, that if they want a dog or a cat, go along to Battersea and find a friend for life.”

Camilla, who turns 75 on Sunday, was greeted by a dog guard of honour in the walled garden at Clarence House, before meeting staff, guests, trustees and celebrity ambassadors, including showbiz performers Paul O’Grady and Amanda Holden and Dragons Den star Tej Lalvani.

At one point, she asked aides to shift the lengthy receiving line into the shade as guests waited to meet her in the sweltering heat.

Author Dame Jacqueline Wilson, 76, fainted and was attended by medics. She soon recovered and sipped water on a bench under a tree.

The dogs were later treated to bowls of strawberry flavour ice cream, which aides revealed had been the Duchess’s idea. Jude’s Ice Cream for Dogs donates five per cent of profits to Battersea.

Several guests congratulated Camilla on this week’s edition of Country Life, which she guest edited for her 75th birthday.

Bluebell and Beth have a starring role in the magazine as the “Girls in Pearls”.

The dogs were pictured wearing the Duchess’s pearl necklaces for an “amusing twist” on the famous society frontispiece.

Camilla confirmed it was her own idea and that the pearls were real but laughed: “I whipped them off very quickly.”

Paul Marvell, executive head of global programmes at Battersea, said the predicted spike in lockdown dogs being handed back had not been as bad as feared but said the home was now approaching capacity with animals looking for new homes. 

He added: “The cost of living crisis might yet still have an effect, it is already slightly at the moment to be honest. We are seeing people citing financial reasons for giving up their pet.

“And with winter coming and the cost of gas and electric bills go up, think there is a possibility the people won’t be able to feed or provide vet care for their animals.”

Amanda Holden said: “Because of lockdown and those two years, understandably there were a lot of people who felt very lonely and found they needed company and could offer a home to a dog.

“But sadly lots of people didn’t think it through so Battersea and a lot of other rehoming centres have had a lot of work on their hands. The aftermath of Covid is that there a lot of cats and dogs and pets in general, actually, needing homes once people go back to their real lives.”

She added: “We have got a dog and a cat and two rabbits. The rabbits are lockdown rabbits but they are still very much still with us.

“My mum and dad have a rescue from Battersea, and my aunt and uncle, I  have just organised a rescue for them and they collected her at the weekend. We keep it in the family.”

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