Pet Names I'm Sick Of Hearing

Pet Names
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Background: I’m currently a 2nd year vet student, which means I’ve spent a LOT of time working in vet clinics, shelters, pet-centric community events, etc. [name]Just[/name] like with names for children, some names for pets are really prevalent, uncreative, and in my opinion, really overdone. While I understand the reasoning behind giving a child a more traditional name, I think that naming pets is really a good time to let creativity come out. After all, the other dogs at the dog park are not going to tease your dog for having an unusual name! Now, I know sometimes there are extenuating circumstances (like you rescued the pet from a shelter situation and it came with a name it already responded to). But in 2 years when I go out into practice, I feel like I’m going to remember the patients with unique names a little more readily than those that have the same name as several other patients. For example, when the receptionist says “Mrs. [name]Smith[/name] is on the line for you with a question about [name]Bailey[/name],” I will probably think “[name]Bailey[/name]… which [name]Bailey[/name]? [name]Bailey[/name] the lab? [name]Bailey[/name] the australian shepherd?”

Anyway, long rant aside, here are some of the names I wish people would stop giving their pets.

Dogs: [name]Bailey[/name], [name]Bear[/name], [name]Charlie[/name], [name]Max[/name], [name]Buddy[/name], [name]Rocky[/name], [name]Jack[/name], [name]Bella[/name], [name]Maggie[/name], [name]Princess[/name], [name]Sophie[/name], Tinkerbell (especially on chihuahuas), [name]Lucy[/name], [name]Lexi[/name], [name]Molly[/name], [name]Ellie[/name], [name]Gracie[/name], [name]Lucky[/name], [name]Luna[/name], [name]Zoe[/name], [name]Coco[/name]

Cats: [name]Kitty[/name], [name]Tiger[/name], [name]Tigger[/name], Smokey, [name]Midnight[/name], [name]Lily[/name], [name]Callie[/name] (especially calico cats), [name]Sophie[/name], [name]Gracie[/name], [name]Simba[/name], [name]Max[/name], [name]Milo[/name], [name]Oliver[/name] (yes, we have a cat in our family named this, but he’s my brother’s cat and my brother had final say on the name!)

On the flip side, here are some of the pet names I’ve come across that I’ve really appreciated for their creativity and/or uniqueness: Limo (a black dachsund mix), [name]Paddy[/name] Bojangles, Truffles, [name]Arizona[/name], Bender, Gremlin, Chupacabra, [name]Stella[/name], Prints, Cinder, Latke, Saravi… and an honorable mention to a family with the last name [name]Bell[/name] that named their dogs Taco and [name]Tinker[/name].

Anyone else want to weigh in? What cool, creative pet names have you heard (or given to a pet)? What ones are you sick of hearing?

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Our dog’s name is Cookie, and we often call her by silly cookie-related nicknames like Oatmeal Raisin, so I think that’s pretty cute - maybe others won’t agree! Haha. Our cat’s name is Monkey - he was my husband’s before we were married, so I didn’t name him. I do think it’s cute, though.

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I can say our family hasn’t always been that creative in the pet-naming department, but we’ve had a lot of pets since we live in the country. I just lost the canine love of my life, my twelve-year-old Boxer, [name]Little[/name] Miss [name]Molly[/name] Boucher (she went by [name]Molly[/name]), in [name]December[/name]. Our fourteen-year-old ailing family dog, [name]Max[/name], is another one on your list. (And I’m just going to say you’ve touched a nerve with me because they have been the best dogs we’ve ever had, and when you talk about pet names, and how you’re sick of them, you might stop to think that many of us may have dearly loved and lost pets with those very names and being berated by you for not being “creative” enough with them might not go over very well with some of us.)

I like to give my pets human names because they’re part of the family. I don’t give them names I would name my own kids. I also like naming them for literary characters or authors or something significant from a novel (i.e., our cat Bourre, named for the card game the YaYa Sisters loved to play, and I once had a Naboo, from [name]Star[/name] Wars, too). I don’t get very scientific or cutesy with their names, but I do put a lot of thought into them just because it is fun for me, even if their name ends up being “common” or “uninteresting.”

My [name]Molly[/name] was a funny, silly puppy, a typical Boxer, and I finally chose her name because it fit her personality. I had to give her a full formal name for the AKC registration, so I went with the “[name]Little[/name] Miss” because of the song lyric, “Good Golly Miss [name]Molly[/name].” “Boucher” is from The Waterboy character, [name]Bobby[/name] Boucher, and was suggested by a friend. We’re from [name]Louisiana[/name], and it just fit her. I can’t imagine her being anything else, and I tried out a LOT of names.

Anyway. I’m not sorry [name]Molly[/name]'s name is “common.” She was a wonderful dog, and her name was very good for her. I always called her [name]Molly[/name] b’Golly, [name]Molly[/name] Bolly. I sang “Good Golly Miss [name]Molly[/name]” to her all the time. I just loved saying her name to her, too. In fact, it was the last thing she ever heard. It was a fun name, one I loved but wouldn’t necessarily have used on a child when I chose it, and of course now I wouldn’t because she was my baby.

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We have always given our animals human names apart from 2 rabbits when I was very young called Flopsy and Smudge.

Dogs
[name]Kim[/name], [name]Tara[/name], [name]Kerri[/name], [name]Tandy[/name] (already her name when we got her), [name]Tillie[/name], [name]Maddie[/name] and [name]Bailey[/name] (she was called [name]Kimberly[/name] and I had a dog called [name]Kim[/name] previously so we changed it slightly by dropping the [name]Kim[/name] and she did have a Baileys coloured stain on her cheek). [name]Maddie[/name] is my 2 year old border collie ball of energy and really fits her name - she is MAD and wouldnt change her for the world!

Rabbits
Flopsy and Smudge

Guinea Pigs
[name]Suzi[/name] and [name]Suki[/name] and now got [name]Poppy[/name], [name]Daisy[/name] and [name]Oakley[/name]

Hamsters
[name]Honey[/name], [name]Dave[/name], [name]Timmy[/name], [name]Isabel[/name] and [name]Oscar[/name]

[name]Fish[/name]
[name]Tony[/name], [name]Billy[/name], [name]Paddy[/name], [name]Alice[/name], [name]Maggie[/name], [name]Dora[/name] and [name]Minnie[/name]

Cockatiel
[name]Lucy[/name]

[name]Even[/name] my flower is called [name]Doris[/name]!

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I’ve only had a few pets in my lifetime so far; [name]Banjo[/name], [name]Clancy[/name] and [name]Molly[/name] all dogs. [name]Rosie[/name] the cat. [name]Diesel[/name] and Bubbles the goldfish.

And [name]Molly[/name] being one of your gripes, I understand–its common. But it totally suits her, we had considered names like [name]Henrietta[/name], [name]Milly[/name], [name]Matilda[/name] and [name]Florence[/name]. Though in the end the general agreement was that everyone liked [name]Molly[/name] and that is it, her show name is “[name]Matilda[/name] Girl” though. :slight_smile:

I don’t think choosing a common name means you are lazy, sometimes it just seems right. But in the end its the pet’s personality you fall in love with, not the name.

But here is some cool pet names I’ve come across:

Baloo, [name]Ursula[/name], KC (Kamikaze [name]Cat[/name]), Fenris, Baldur, Arishok and Muggle.

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Our cats are named Jhumpa and Copernicus. We recently had to put down our beloved Cafe con Leche. I have to give credit to my husband for the names.

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When I was 3 I named my cat Teetat! I wouldn’t let anyone call him anything besides that. Over my life I’ve had…

Cats/Dogs
Tomcat (my grandma’s), Lady (my great grandma’s dog), [name]Maxine[/name] (miniature pinscher), [name]Shadow[/name] (black cat), Stignacious [name]Alexander[/name] aka [name]Stig[/name] (cat), Frosty (cat), The [name]Cat[/name] (I wanted so badly to name him Cuddly! But he wasn’t very cuddly…)

Birds
Fluffy (duck), Mi & [name]Yo[/name] (as in “my bird, yo bird”, lovebirds)

Small Mammals
[name]Angel[/name] (my sister’s hamster…who ironically was NOT an angel), [name]Jack[/name] (my brother’s hamster)

[name]Fish[/name]/Other
Muchacho & Muchacha and [name]Queen[/name] Liliuokalani (hermit crabs), [name]Neo[/name] (fish), Kijivu (means “[name]Gray[/name]” in Swahili, fish), [name]Mango[/name] (my grandma’s, huge fish)

My current pets are [name]Pepper[/name] (dachshund), [name]Lacy[/name] (lab mix), Beignet (chihuahua/dachshund mix), [name]Tiger[/name] (cat), [name]Mickey[/name] & [name]Tuesday[/name] (sibling cats), and [name]Brett[/name] Lampnoodle (hermit crab). I’d say my family’s pretty creative with pet names!

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@ShellezBellez First of all, my deepest condolences on the loss of your beloved friend. I can’t even imagine what a wreck I’m going to be when my 19-year-old kitty finally passes on. Second, I am so sorry if I offended you about the names issue. I should clarify and say that my issue isn’t with those names themselves so much as the process behind naming animals. What really bothers me is when people don’t put any thought into their pets’ names and just reach for any old generic name, because they ARE family members and I feel like some thought should go into picking a name that fits them. You clearly put a lot of love and thought into naming [name]Molly[/name], and I commend you for it, because that’s how it should be. I certainly wasn’t trying to “berate” anyone. And for the record, I would NEVER say to a client who, for example, just introduced their new kitten [name]Tiger[/name] “Oh, how unoriginal.” It isn’t uncommon though for people in the veterinary “business” to become a little jaded, and I was just airing a, forgive the pun, “pet peeve”.

@[name]Romy[/name] I agree that all people who give their pets a common name are not lazy. If it fits, it fits whether it is common or not. I just want people to think about it when they are naming their animals! I have been known to try out different names on a cat until finding the one that is just right. Sometimes my more creative attempts just don’t work! We had a foster cat for a while that my mom and brothers insisted on naming [name]Lily[/name]. I resisted, and tried out names like [name]Aspen[/name] and [name]Azure[/name] before finally conceding that yes, she was a [name]Lily[/name]. :slight_smile:

@Paola_w Cafe con Leche is adorable! When I foster litters of kittens I like to give them theme names, and I’ve been thinking about doing a coffee theme next (Espresso, Latte, Macchiato, etc.).

And in general I have no problem with giving pets human names! [name]One[/name] of our family’s cats is named [name]Penelope[/name] [name]Ann[/name]! She has lots of nicknames…

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We have two pets in my house right now: a Doberman named [name]Selena[/name] and a Schnauzer/Dachshund mix named [name]Grover[/name]. [name]Selena[/name] was already a year or two old when we got her so we didn’t change her name. I recently adopted [name]Grover[/name] from the local animal shelter as a puppy and got to pick his name myself.

Other pets we’ve had: [name]Flash[/name], [name]Ellie[/name], [name]Bailey[/name], [name]Montana[/name], [name]Ricky[/name], [name]Henry[/name], [name]Cooper[/name], [name]Bo[/name]… can’t remember any others. My grandparents have two horses and two dogs: [name]Abby[/name], [name]Jock[/name], Tippy, and [name]Harley[/name]. My other grandparents don’t have pets right now but their most notable pet was a dog named [name]Rufus[/name] the Doofus.

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Can we still use Tinkerbell… if its for a Doberman? Because I’ve wanted a Dobie for eons and my husband thinks Tinkerbell is what one needs to be called.

Our cat is named [name]Grue[/name], after the grues in Zork, the videogame. “It is dark. You are likely to be eaten by a [name]Grue[/name].” Our little all-black cat makes a good [name]Grue[/name].

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@Stripedsocks I think Tinkerbell on a Dobie is much less cliche than Tinkerbell on a small breed dog! I love unexpected names. My friend’s [name]German[/name] [name]Shepherd[/name] is named [name]Little[/name], and I’ve met a St. [name]Bernard[/name] named [name]Tiny[/name]. :slight_smile:

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We had a beloved boxer named Boomer. My little brother named him after his favorite quarterback. He passed away several years ago, and my family, after a year, decided to get a beagle. We all debated his name for several weeks. It came down to [name]Harry[/name] [name]Potter[/name] and Waffles. My brother said there is no way the dog is going to be called [name]Harry[/name] [name]Potter[/name]. So Waffles it is.

My family has had the dog for three years now, and it turns out, Waffles is the perfect name for him.

As an added plus, one of Waffles’ best dog friends is called Bagel. (Total coincidence!)

My husband and I have plans to adopt two cats in the future. I’ve been planning for years on calling them Vanilla and [name]Basil[/name]. But, I dreamed that [name]Basil[/name] told me that his name was [name]Cinnamon[/name]. I guess we shall see!

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Oh! And I just recently met a dalmatian called “Dalai Mama”.

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I’ve had cats named Rhonda and Moses, and also had fish named Basil and Billy Idol.
I recently named my friend’s cat Avery, and also helped name my brother’s dog Nova.

I love naming pets!

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When we got our kitten over 2 years ago now, we just couldnt think of a name for him, we went through a few but settled on [name]Alfie[/name], and oh does it suit him down to the ground. He is a cheecky thing, who can be annoying but oh so cute, couldnt picture him with any other name.

Our other cat is named MUM - she was a stray and had kittens in my husbands nans garden, so as she was a mum, they just called her mum, her surviving kittens were named [name]Billy[/name] and Smudge

When we took over the house when she passed we inherited Mum and Smudge (billy had passed by then), smudge has since passed but so suited his name. I can be strange talking about MUM we do get some laughs but she is about 11 now and so used to her name.

My mum has 4 cats
[name]Tommy[/name]
[name]Casper[/name] - but he also goes by [name]Jasper[/name] (my sister calls him this)
Masie - stray at mums work who she rescued and was named this already
[name]Molly[/name] [name]Cat[/name] - also a stray but called [name]Cat[/name] by a friend as didnt want to get attached - mum took her in and we added the [name]Molly[/name]

My Dads dog is called [name]Nelson[/name] and is from a rescue centre came with his name

My step mums parents dog is called [name]Paddy[/name]

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My very first pet was a goldfish called [name]Wanda[/name], as in A [name]Fish[/name] Called [name]Wanda[/name]. I was only 4 or so and had begged for a fish and my mum would only let me have one if called it [name]Wanda[/name] :stuck_out_tongue: .

Our darling [name]Golden[/name] Retriever who my parents got before I was born was called [name]Molly[/name]. I do know they spent ages trying to find the perfect name for her, and my dad is so picky about names! It suited her really well. Her show name was [name]Pansy[/name] Platinum [name]Princess[/name], which sort of makes up for the fairly ordinary [name]Molly[/name].

When I was very young I also had a rabbit called Flopsy, a guinea pig called [name]Lulu[/name] and a hamster called [name]Susannah[/name] who mostly went by [name]Suzie[/name]. Oh, and I also had three rats. The first one’s full name was [name]Samuel[/name] Whisker but we mostly called him [name]Sammy[/name], then I got two together called [name]Reggie[/name] and [name]Ronnie[/name] (more parental influence there, except this time I was actually bribed to name them that!).

Now we have rescue goldie called [name]Tova[/name] who already had her name when we got her. We thought about changing it to [name]Clover[/name] or [name]Nova[/name] but her name really suits her. Plus we get to call her Toto :slight_smile: . We also have a hamster called Miss Fluffy McWoo who is usually [name]Missy[/name] or Fluffy.

Some other good pet names I’ve heard:
[name]Myfanwy[/name] Bonington Boots “Myffy”- one of my mum’s old cats, named after climber [name]Chris[/name] Bonington as she was one of life’s climbers
Dizzy- another of my mum’s
[name]Frieda[/name]- my aunt’s cat
Sykes
[name]Cloud[/name]
[name]Pippin[/name]

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Quoting myself to say [name]Grue[/name] now has a little brother. We got a fluffy all-white kitten from a rescue, and his name is Nimbus, 'cause he looks like a cloud.

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I have a friend who named his dog [name]Bo[/name], with the last name Rito.
When I was 8 and got a dog, I wasn’t original, her name was Brownie. But when I get a dog again, if it’s a boy dog, [name]Chester[/name], a girl would be [name]Edie[/name].

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My grandpa has a dog named Yogi because the dog always does the yoga pose Downward Facing Dog. I thought that was really original.

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I grew up with two farm dogs: [name]Nick[/name] and Socks (cause he was all golden except for his white paws). And one cat: Doobie Jackooder (an inside joke… ).

And now my siblings have cats that often come for family events: Lady Sassafras and Roo (“nephew” to my sister-in-law’s [name]Tigger[/name]). My sister (the one who Lady Sassafras belongs to) hopes to some day have a dog named [name]Lord[/name] [name]Ellington[/name].

I’d like to think we’ve been pretty creative in our family!