I work with dogs. LOTS of dogs. They are my life. I see on average 130+ dogs per month and over 500 during busy streaks. So because of that I have a lot of names tied to images of dog faces. I’m talking hundreds of names that I have deemed off-limits because they’re “dog names” only by my own standards.
I’m not talking the normal [name_m]Otis[/name_m], [name_m]Buddy[/name_m], [name_u]Bailey[/name_u], [name_u]Max[/name_u], [name_f]Daisy[/name_f]. Which are hardcore dog names but even [name_f]Isabella[/name_f], [name_f]Isabelle[/name_f], [name_f]Violet[/name_f], [name_f]Lucy[/name_f], and [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f]!
Does anyone else work in a vet’s office or dog kennel and have this naming dilemma? I am at a loss for coming up with names that arent made up or off-the-wall, ugly OR set in stone as dog’s names in my brain.
No, I don’t have this problem.
It sounds seriously rough! I can never underestand why dogs are named ‘normal’ thinngs like [name_f]Isabelle[/name_f].
If I had a dog it would have a very unusual name that’s mostly a GP I would never use for a child, since that would be the perfect place to actually get to use it, or some word name or something along those lines. (Or a combination of the two, like [name_f]Honey[/name_f])
[name_f]My[/name_f] cats were named [name_f]Cleo[/name_f] (short for [name_f]Cleopatra[/name_f]) and Salt (called Salty-Salt affectionately, she once had a brother named [name_u]Pepper[/name_u])
I do work in daycare though, and while some of the children make me love their names, some really, really don’t… And so many of the names seem super-popular to me because I encounter them every day…
I don’t work with dogs anymore, but I did in the past and definitely cannot get past some ‘doggy-sounding’ names. [name_u]Bailey[/name_u] and [name_u]Payton[/name_u]'s favorite activities should include playing fetch and drinking out of the toilet, in my opinion. Likewise, I will forever associate [name_f]Molly[/name_f] with a long, luxurious(coat) of blonde hair. In other words, every [name_f]Molly[/name_f] I know is a [name_u]Golden[/name_u] Retriever.
The names I like best on dogs are the names that are totally animal names, like names that no sane person would give to a human being. Lots of names are good on people and animals though ([name_u]Sam[/name_u], [name_u]Max[/name_u], [name_u]Jess[/name_u]). The most important thing is that the name is short (two syllables max imo) and easy to call, and easy for the dog to recognise.
I have no idea why you would name a dog [name_f]Isabella[/name_f], [name_u]Izzy[/name_u] or [name_f]Bella[/name_f] are both good, but you shouldn’t have to shorten the name of a dog! I think some people name their pets as if they were children because they kind of do see their dog as their child, or a child substitute in some way - you hear so many people referring to themselves as their dog’s ‘mummy’ or ‘daddy’ eye roll. Dogs are great and I have loved all the dogs I’ve ever had very much, and definitely considered them part of the family. But they aren’t people.
Of course some people also give their pets human names because they think it’s funny, which it is if it’s the right name. A dog called [name_m]Alan[/name_m] or [name_m]Paul[/name_m] is pretty funny. But then they are usually not popular children’s names - I think the canine [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f], [name_f]Isabella[/name_f] and [name_f]Violet[/name_f] were named by people who would probably have named their daughters that. One of my childhood dogs was named [name_f]Phoebe[/name_f] by my mother, and I have never really thought that was a dog’s name, it’s kind of silly. I think my mum just wanted to use that name and she wasn’t having any more children.
If I were you I would just take the name you like and ask people who don’t have that level of exposure to dogs whether they think of a dog. Most people are not going to say that [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] is a dog’s name. If you get enough reassurance, or maybe if you meet some people with the name, maybe it would help.
I prefer “people names” on animals. Instead of Fido or [name_f]Missy[/name_f] or Snowball or something silly.
Our dogs are called [name_f]Carrie[/name_f] and [name_f]Millie[/name_f]- we love their names. I named one after a character from “[name_m]Little[/name_m] House on the [name_u]Prairie[/name_u]”, my Mum named the other from a musical called “Thoroughly Modern [name_f]Millie[/name_f]”.
I don’t necessarily have this problem, but whenever I see the name [name_m]Griffin[/name_m] suggested on this site, I just laugh and think, “No! That’s my dog’s name!” haha. I imagine it would be tough, though. I used to volunteer at a Humane Society when I was a teenager and always wished I could be one of the people who named the animals as they came in!
I prefer “people names” for pets. I roll by eyes when I hear of a dog BamBam, [name_m]Bud[/name_m] or Tinkerbell. We already have our names for future dogs lined up, [name_f]Luna[/name_f] and [name_m]Hugo[/name_m]. [name_m]Both[/name_m] names that I love. I see pets as part of the family, and while Mr. E is working night shifts, or 48 hour shifts, these pets will be my company and protectors.
I once fostered a dog that was an owner surrender and his name was [name_u]Parker[/name_u]. When I looked at his papers I realized his former owner also have him a middle name. The dog’s full name was [name_u]Parker[/name_u] [name_m]Thomas[/name_m]…I found that a little bizarre.
I think is is funny to name dogs or even cats human names. A friend named her dog Izaboo. Calls her [name_u]Izzy[/name_u]. It’s adorable. I named my cat [name_m]Milo[/name_m], and as a joke gave him a middle name. [name_m]Milo[/name_m] [name_m]Matthew[/name_m].
Our dogs name is Bowser, but when we got him from the shelter he was given the name [name_m]Luke[/name_m] already. I don’t know why they chose that name, but he had already grown used to it. So we called him Bowser [name_m]Luke[/name_m] for him to get used to his new name of just Bowser. He now only comes to Bowser, and oddly enough [name_m]Bubba[/name_m]- what our girls call him because they couldn’t say Bowser. [name_f]Every[/name_f] once and awhile I catch myself saying Bowser [name_m]Luke[/name_m]. We said it for about two months to get him acquainted with his new name, and I guess it just stuck with me. All his papers read just Bowser. [name_m]Luke[/name_m] is his unofficial middle name. Lol.
We’ve had a mixture. We had a dog called Waffles and rabbits Jiffy and Fluffa. Then we have also had a cat called Ollie and a rabbit called Willow. I name my pets what I think suits them, be it a “people” name or an animal name. As you can see from my signature though, most of my potential future bunny names would not be suitable on people.
This has been a problem for us too. [name_f]My[/name_f] DH’s favourite girl name - [name_f]Maggie[/name_f] - was used by his parents for their border collie. We still considered it for DD, but ultimately, it didn’t fly. Which was good, cause we’ve met probably 5-6 new dogs named [name_f]Maggie[/name_f] since DD was born. Now DH’s parents have a [name_f]Zoe[/name_f] dog. Stop using cute names for your dogs!! lol.
When I was having my fun baby name brainstorm conversation a few years ago with my BF, she responded to almost all of my ideas with ‘Dog’. [name_f]Daisy[/name_f]? Dog! [name_f]Maisie[/name_f]? Dog! [name_f]Myra[/name_f]? Dog! [name_f]Beatrice[/name_f]? Ugly! I will admit some of those were used commonly now by dogs, but it scared me into not discussing my top names with anyone I knew. Which was probably for the best.
I guess I’m kind of a culprit here. I name my pets human names. [name_m]Even[/name_m] middle names. [name_f]My[/name_f] cat is named [name_u]Alfie[/name_u] [name_m]Paul[/name_m].
I think pet names are a great place to use all of your GPs (although my current cat is [name_f]Minerva[/name_f] “[name_f]Minnie[/name_f],” which I still have as a MN on my list.) The next pet I get will probably be named [name_m]Lucifer[/name_m] or Calamity [name_f]Jane[/name_f].
I don’t care for common or popular human names on pets. I have fostered a couple hundred dogs in the last 5-6 years and have named almost every one, using a mixture of human and non human names, just depending.
I will admit to thinking a dog would make a great “___” but then not using it because I really really prefer it in my baby name list! [name_m]Don[/name_m]'t want to jinx it by the dog being very naughty or taking forever to get adopted.
That said, I have used a [name_m]Grant[/name_m] for a dog… And would not hesitate to put it on a kid.
Also my parents had a series of Labradors named [name_m]Mac[/name_m], but it won’t stop me from using it as a nn.
I have worked some with dogs, but nothing like you do.
I teach school, have for 27 years, so my feelings like yours are about names I used to like but then I met this kid…. Or names I didn’t like and then I met this kid….
I don’t think in terms of dog and human names though. I just like names or I don’t. I name my animals human names because there isn’t much dignity in being named Spot or Rover.
And if I had to choose between people and animals, you’d find me on the Ark so to speak.
PS I am astounded by some of the posts which make fun of animals being given “human” names. We haven’t come far enough in treating animals with the respect they deserve. I’ve seldom met a dog or cat I didn’t like, but I’ve met a number of wretched human beings.
Haha, there isn’t much dignity in a lot of things dogs do. I think the best name our family has ever given a dog is [name_f]Jaffa[/name_f], like the orange, because he’s orange. Spot is a great name for a spotty dog. Seriously think a dog’s going to be embarrassed to be named Rover? They don’t even have language (yes they have all sorts of ways of communicating, I know, but not language). Your dog doesn’t have a real sense of what a name even is, all it knows is that’s the noise you make to get its attention. So it should be short and easy for the dog to recognise, that’s basically the only requirement, no need to worry about dignity. I’m not sure whether you’re including me in the people you are “astounded” at, but I find it a bit offensive that you would go from: “I don’t think it’s a good idea to treat dogs as if they were human” to “I have no respect for animals”. Maybe you didn’t mean it that way, but it comes off almost like you’re accusing people of not treating their animals right.
Speaking for myself, I love dogs. I am a confirmed dog-lover. I think they’re a wonderful species, and certainly easier to love than humans a lot of the time. [name_f]Every[/name_f] dog we’ve ever had has been treated well, and like a member of the family, they had/have great lives. [name_m]Just[/name_m] not like a human member of the family. [name_f]Every[/name_f] time a dog died everyone was heartbroken, we cried and cried (of course). BUT, if it had been my brother that had died, would it have been the same level of upset? Of course not. We’d never ever get over something like that, especially not my parents, that would be a completely devastating level of grief for them. There’s simply no valid comparison between dogs and children.
Added to that, I really don’t think it’s kind to the dog if you actually do treat it like a person. They’re a completely different species, they think differently, have different needs, they’re nowhere near as intelligent - it’s not doing the dog any favours to pretend it’s not different. At the end of the day, name it what you like, but it’s not your child, so I don’t see any particular reason why it should be named like one. All I thought was that sometimes human-naming is a symptom of the way some people like to pretend dogs are their children. It doesn’t have to be, but it seems that often it goes hand in hand. If you give your dog a human name but you still let it be a dog, that’s fine. I know my old dog [name_f]Phoebe[/name_f] was always treated like a dog, so no problems.
[name_f]My[/name_f] [name_m]Black[/name_m] Lab is [name_f]Daphne[/name_f] and I actually love the name. It suits her well, she’s girly yet very spunky. Full of energy, tough, yet totally sweet. Her middle name is [name_f]Alabama[/name_f]. We have many nicknames for her… Daffie, [name_f]Daffodil[/name_f], [name_f]Diva[/name_f] [name_f]Daphne[/name_f], or sometimes just Daph. Our Siberian Husky is Sinatra because of his blue eyes. We mostly call him [name_m]Bubba[/name_m] (a lazy form of “baby”) and Mister.
[name_f]My[/name_f] parents have a Beagle named [name_m]Simon[/name_m] [name_u]Monroe[/name_u] and a cat named [name_u]Bennie[/name_u]. Their [name_m]German[/name_m] [name_m]Shepherd[/name_m] was named Starrie [name_f]Antoinette[/name_f] and as a child we had a [name_u]Golden[/name_u] Retriever named [name_m]Kodie[/name_m] (after the [name_f]Kodiak[/name_f] bear). [name_f]My[/name_f] parents also named their [name_m]Saint[/name_m] [name_m]Bernard[/name_m] [name_m]Rush[/name_m] and one of their cats [name_m]Rocket[/name_m].
Growing up, my husband had dogs named [name_u]Angel[/name_u] and [name_f]Shadow[/name_f].
And a dear friend of mine named her dog [name_m]Baron[/name_m] and her cat [name_f]Rosemary[/name_f].
I think dogs can be named anything! Human names are totally acceptable or traditional dog names like [name_u]Max[/name_u], [name_m]Milo[/name_m], Rover, Rascal, etc. As long as you think it’s acceptable for your dog, then go ahead!
I prefer animal names on animals to human names on animals. I tend to name pets by their color or general look. In the future I want two fluffy cats, one black name Choco and a white cat names [name_f]Nilla[/name_f]. I also want a orangey brown cat called either [name_f]Cinnamon[/name_f] and Nutmeg. I had a dog named [name_f]Foxy[/name_f], she was a Australian cattle dog and she looked like a fox.
[name_f]My[/name_f] aunt has a dog named [name_f]Maggie[/name_f]. All of her girl dogs have been named [name_f]Maggie[/name_f], so to me that’s all animal.
I guess it doesn’t bother me that much. I know a dog and baby named [name_u]Piper[/name_u], but I can’t say that it fits the baby any better than the dog. It really just works with both. [name_f]My[/name_f] dog is a golden retriever named [name_f]Gertrude[/name_f]. I would personally love to meet a little girl that shares her name with [name_f]Gerty[/name_f]. I’m not a fan of pets named after food (taco, cheeseburger, oreo) but I plan to use [name_f]Plum[/name_f] as the mn if we have a girl.
I will admit some of those were used commonly now by dogs, but it scared me into not discussing my top names with anyone I knew. Which was probably for the best.