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Naming a new puppy can be a bit challenging, but many people find it fun. But remember, every puppy deserves the right to have a name that fits his or her personality and physical appeal as well. They may also be named by owners due to their own expectations for the puppy. In this article, we take a closer look at dog names and some of the more common, (and not so common), dog names and naming tactics.
A Closer Look at Dog Names
First, a dog’s name should be preferably short, snappy, and catchy; around one to two syllables is okay. Second, it should not be rhyme or sound like any commands, or any of the names of his masters to avoid confusion the dog.
Below are some of the world’s naming conventions for dogs:
- As with most owners, some of them have named their dog Spot, Blackie, Brownie, Rusty or anything that resembles the dog’s physical appearance.
- There are also many who name their dogs after favorite stuff like food, TV show characters, books, and other media, such as Sherlock, Sam, or Sugar.
- While a closer look at dog names that are supposed to describe a dog’s appearance, some owners like to take naming in a humorous and oxymoron way. For example: a Shi Tzu is named “Superman”, or “Peanut” is actually a Great Dane, or a white dog can be named “Blackie”.
- Most breeders follow their parents’ names and re-arrange them instead, or they may think of a unified concept in naming the puppies (e.g. all start with the same letter).
- There are many others who name their puppies from song phrases, business or computer terminologies, food or recipes, or famous people.
- In breed shows, things take a different turn when it comes to naming deserving sporting champs. Some dogs are named to match their ‘potential’ as winners, such as “First Edition”, “Show Stopper”, “Something Special”, “Totally Awesome”, “Stage Presence” and many others. And some creative owners give their dogs names “Hulk Hogan”, “Armed ‘n Dangerous” and “Above the Law” to attempt some reverse psychology.
- Movies and TV also influence dog naming. Some pups are named “Jedi Master”, “Indiana Jones”, “Gone with the wind”, “Dirty Harry”, “Diamonds are Forever”, “Star Wars”, and many more. Some are even named after characters like “Wizard of Oz” or “Music man”, and some are named after celebrities, such as “Oprah Winfrey” or “Walt Disney”.
- Some food-lover owners also take it as a creative opportunity to name their pet with names like, “Cookies”, “Oreo”, “Red Hot Chili Pepper”, “Peaches ‘n Cream” or “Blueberry Muffin”.
- There are also humorous names like “Queen Elizabasset”, “Santa Paws” or “Bull Wrinkle”.
- While there is a limit to having dogs of the same name, some can simply change spellings like “Thyme”, “Tyme”, “Nite”, “Knight” or “Majic” instead of “Magic”.
But in the long run as we take a closer look at dog names there is no limit to getting inspiration for dog names, just as long as you have a short call name for them, especially for dogs with long names.
How do you select a name for your dogs? Comments are welcome below.
Ken f
says:Named dog Dammit . Sit dammit, Come dammit , it works
Chelsea machon
says:My staffy cross jackrussle is called tia (teabag ,teatea ,pup mysters)
My springer is called ladyjane (lady,jane,janey,janey painy)
Rene'
says:My pup came with a name she didn’t answer to so we shortened it down to CC which everyone calls her but between her and I, I call her my sea monster or sea for short don’t know where that came from but it works. In my life the dogs some how always choose thier own names.
We named or puppy Cappieand we’ve yet to meet anyone with the same name:)
Peggy
says:I had a red doberman …and what else can you call a red-headed devil dog but a bibical name Jezabel.
My cocker spaniel was named Dee-O-Gee. People wopuld ask me all the time was that Spanish or Italian and what did it mean LOL
Christy
says:My dachshunds were given German names since they are German descendants. Bruno Heinrich, Heidi Brunhilda, Elsa Matilda, Gretchen Analeise. My grandson helped pick the names. We are German descendants too so it was a natural naming selection. Dachshunds are so adorable and have such distinct personalities. I can’t imagine life without them.
My litte Jack Russel-lady is named Mimi. She is now 13 years old and still going strong- not even grey yet! She came to us when she was 10 from the neighbour in the apartment across the hall. He was suffering from dementia and also from bad hips and legs…he ended up in the hospital from a stroke and never came back home so Mimi decided to move in with us(yeah she picked us!)
He did not remeber much except for Mimi and he told me the story several times of when he was young and was in France studying. He rented a room in a house and the daughter of the family was named Mimi. He still remebered her beauty 45 years later when he got this adorable puppy and that is how she got her name. Someone told me that Mimi is also meaning something like “sweetie” in French..don’t know if it’s true but if it is it’s perfect. Mimi is the most attention seeking dog on the planet. A real lapdog that likes to have her neck scratched so much so when the humans don’t want to she finds a dog and “tells” them to lick her neck, and they usually do it-it’s amazing:)
Jeff
says:My dog passed about 1-1/2 years ago, but I gave her the name “Tamiym” {taw-meem}. It is a Hebrew word meaning, innocent, honest, simple and sincere. She was Husky and Ridgeback, and she lived up to her name! She was 12-1/2 years old when she passed.
Wanda
says:We had a black Chow whose dad’s name was Chatto Negro Saki, so we didn’t want to follow that name. We ended up naming him, Tar Rah Rah Boomerang, Boomer for short! I always loved that name and it fit him perfectly. He died several years ago at the age of 13! I still miss him!
Norajean
says:I named my standard poodle, Kiefer, after Kiefer Sutherland as was a huge ’24’ fan. Kiefer acts like him as well
bridget
says:Awesome! I had a Rhodesian Ridgeback named Keifer. He was a wonderful dog.
Jamie
says:Mine was named Cooper, after Sheldon Cooper from the Big Bang Theory. I went through TV shows my husband & I both watch together. Scary thing is, he is a lot like Sheldon, but in the form of a dog. He goes nuts if you’re sitting on the wrong spot on the couch.
Joe Roake
says:Awesome! love the big bang theory. Also to Rhonda’s post – i always like to name my pets real names. It’s just more fun that way. Proper sophisticated names are always my thing. when i was trying to name my dog i came across a couple of articles that helped me out. check it out if you’re trying to name your pet – bit.ly/YAEl1V
Rhonda
says:my dogs are my family, so i’ve always given them human names. i almost always have a name in mind, but it will most likely change to something else when i look at my new dog the first time…..rm
Kathy
says:my dogs names just “came” to me…..for example Jake was named because he makes a sighing noise that sounds like Jake Brakes on a semi truck, Church received her name because she was a last minute save from the euth room and Hudson, well he is just Hudson no rhyme or reason to him 🙂
Danel Wyatt
says:It was hard naming my little toy fox terrier- I wanted him to have a strong durable name, something that I really liked. So I thought about things that I really liked… Finally I decided on Levi (yes, like the jeans!!) I’m happy with the name and it fits him well. Though I usually call him, Baby, Munchkin, Little Mister and a whole slew of other nicknames…