How do you pick names for your pets?

1. 79

   Marcy Goodfleischposted 12 years ago

   How do you pick names for your pets?
   
   We had some unusual names for our pets when I was a kid (my brother named one cat "Mody" because the cat sounded like its 'motor' was running when it purred.  Any cute stories about pets' names in your household?

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2. 72

   Twilight Lawnsposted 12 years ago

   I have sendom had the chance to name any of my pets. I have had many over the years, but will just refer here to my dogs the Norbury Mudhounds mentioned in the Hub of that name.
   Firstly, Dulcie, my first Norbury Mudhound. She came to me, already named after the British actress, Dulcie Grey (or Gray, I can't remember the spelling).
   Her pups from her "First Marriage" were:
   Harry, named by John, who initially gave me Dulcie.
   Zoki, named by Nemanja, a Serbian boy in my class who spoke no English and asked me if he could name the puppy. (Zoki is the diminutive of the Serbian name, Zoran -male variety).
   Malcolm, who was given away by me and called Dax but eventually was returned (Hooray!) almost two years later.
   The day he returned, he and I were walking on Streatham Common and he wandered too far and for some reason I called out, "Malcolm" (not Dax) and he came back. So obviously he liked being called Malcolm so that became his name.
   From Dulcie's "Second Marriage) there was:
   Elisabeth, named after the heroine from one of my two favourite operas, 'Don Carlo' - Elisabeth de Valois. Elisabeth was content to be called just "Elisabeth" so we left it at that.
   The other bitch I kept from that Litter was also named fever the Heroine of my other favourite Opera: 'Semiramide'. Her official name was Semiramide Dorking-Dog, but like her sister Elisabeth de Valois, she was happy not to "pull rank" and accepted being called Semi. (See my Hub of the same name)
   So I didn't get to name all my animals, but my Best Friend, Judi, who stole one of Dulcie's first litter,named that one, Tallulah Blankhead, also known as Tally.

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   1. 79

      Marcy Goodfleischposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I love your creative way of naming your pets!  It would be neat to be surrounded by opera characters - although I am charmed by the Zoki story!

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3. 80

   carolpposted 12 years ago

   As we decided to have a dog in our family, we wonder what name do we give to our dog? The breeder gave us a tip that the first letter a dog's name have to begin A when the dog is the first birth, so A like Amor. If the dog is the second birth, the name would begin with letter B. Our dog is a second birth so we named her BENDA.

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   1. 79

      Marcy Goodfleischposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Wow! I've never heard of that tradition!  Makes sense - but I guess you'd never get as far as Spot in one litter!

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      faisalb87posted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Wow....

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4. 76

   bohemiotxposted 12 years ago

   With my last pack of cats, I wanted multicultural names for them. Mr. Ro' had Black and Hispanic roots to his name. Ro' is short for "rojo," Spanish for "red." Mr. Pugh is my favorite octogenarian neighbor (African-American).Mr. Ro's nickname was "typing companion," because he used to lay in between my keyboard and computer screen when I was typing. Dat got his name from Texas A&M/Dallas Cowboy linebacker, Dat Nguyen (Vietnamese). Dat's nickname was "Silky Smooth," because of his unique fur. Ms. Kwame was named after the first president of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah. Smoky (Tiger Owl) sounds Native American--the only non-red tabby of the bunch.   Screensaver had exotic broad red stripes; she couldn't be caught in the move to a new house. I guess she was a white lady. Lupita means "little Lupe" in Spanish; unfortunately, this cat had the nickname "Boring Cat" also--monotone, repetitive meow, easily the dumbest cat of the bunch.

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   1. 79

      Marcy Goodfleischposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Ha! I had to laugh at your Boring Cat reference!  I've had a cat named Squeeky before - no other name would do; that was the only sound he would make.  I think I may also have had a relative of your keyboard companion!

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5. 74

   Shaddieposted 12 years ago

   I have a whole hub on the topic of naming pets: http://shaddie.hubpages.com/hub/Boring-Dog-Names
   
   I really get sick of the same ol' same 'ol when meeting new animals, and I offer some ideas of how to figure out better names in my hub. It was originally geared towards dogs, but it can obviously work for any pet

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   1. 79

      Marcy Goodfleischposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Cool! I can't wait to read your hub!  I agree - naming tricks can be interchangeable.

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6. 70

   mvillecatposted 12 years ago

   Our pet names have always come from literature...Scout, Pilot, Zelda. All except one-Annabelle-who we let a foster child name. I like the tradition we have started.

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   1. 79

      Marcy Goodfleischposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Oh, yes!  Scout is one of my all-time favorite characters!  Great way to name your pets!

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7. 83

   bravewarriorposted 12 years ago

   I normally watch their personalities.  If I have to wait too long to see who they are (in order for them to know their name), I pick something biblical.

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   1. 72

      Twilight Lawnsposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      What?  Like God?
      That's the first one that springs to mind.
      Good name for a dog if it's dyslexic.  Then it has a good chance of recognising its own name when it's written.

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8. 60

   nishantrana2507posted 12 years ago

   my girlfriend name is shalini one of her cat name is gracy because the cat color is grey.

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   1. 60

      nishantrana2507posted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I PICK MY PET NAME  ON THE COLOR OF PET

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9. 60

   Alisa Arishinaposted 12 years ago

   I know this is terrible, but I have a puppy that's been with me for weeks that I just can't give a name to. She's so cute, but nothing seems to fit her, because we always call her baby, kitty, little one, etc.
   
   Also, I have a cat named Cat, and a dog named Bunny. As you can see, I have a problem in the naming department.

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   1. 72

      Twilight Lawnsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I think you can be good at naming animals if you let them tell you themselves.look at the great poet, U? S, Elliot in his poem'The Naming of Cats'.
      It's a brilliantly funny poem, and it might give you some ideas.
      Or conversely, you could sit down wit

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10. 62

    tipsheetsposted 12 years ago

    I like to name my pets after a favorite book or movie character.

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11. 47

    spotty25posted 12 years ago

    well if you have any kids or you have already said no more kids you could by a dog and if have a name that you always liked but not been game enough to give it to one of you kids you may as well give it to the dog or anything that you get but not really a fish that wouldnt be reasonable. :>)

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    1. 79

       Marcy Goodfleischposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       That's cute - and I think I've known people who have done that!

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