Selecting Your Dog’s Name

So you are merrily playing with your brand new puppy, and the inevitable question arises. What are we going to name this young fellow?

Well, besides being fun, selecting a name for your puppy can have important consequences, for both the dog’s future behavior and your own relationship with him (and even your neighbors and friends).

There are seven things to consider before finalizing your choice:

• You want a degree of individuality to the name – when you call his name in a public place, you want him to be the only dog that has that name. So it’s usually best to avoid names like Fido or Spot.

• It is generally thought that names comprised of two syllables are the best. A one syllable name may result in the dog becoming confused often. For example, if her name is Lass, she’ll likely misunderstand whenever she hears the word "last" or rhyming words such as "glass". Similarly, some one syllable names sound like common dog commands, so calling him "Hail" might sound to him like the command "heal", while the name "Noah" is very confusing with "No".

• On the other hand, names with too many syllables can be hard for a pup to learn. If the name is too long or difficult to say, the puppy may get confused or lose interest. And you want the name to be one that is easy for you and your family to say. Remember, when calling the puppy, to use an upbeat and gentle voice, so that the pup associates good feelings with the sound of his name and is therefore more likely to respond when called.

• Of course there are a number of other factors that can come into play. Your cute little Labrador puppy will grow into quite a large adult, so you don’t want to call him Tiny (unless you like the irony). It’s best also to give it a few days before finalizing the dog’s name, so you have time to learn a bit about his personality. Many dog owners like to name their pups after a particular character trait observed, like Frisky or Moody. But remember that your playful, excitable puppy may as an adult be fairly docile, depending upon his breed, and so naming him Fireball may not suit his adult personality.

• Some people like to name the new pup after an event, so if for example the dog was born on Easter Friday, she might be called Easter. Similarly, some folks prefer to name the dog based on the dog’s breed, so an Irish Setter might be given an Irish name like Liam, and a French Poodle could be called Marie.

• Of course, you should select a name that you will be proud to call out in public. Naming him Satan or Bozo can lead to embarrassment and raised eyebrows when you are calling him at the local park.

• If you have children, it’s a really good idea to let them participate in the naming of the new pet, as it may help instill in them a sense of responsibility for the care of the dog if they helped name her.

In case you are interested, the most popular names for male dogs last year were Max, Buddy, Jake, Rocky, Bailey, Buster, Cody, Charlie, Bear and Jack. For female dogs, the list is Molly, Maggie, Daisy, Lucy, Sadie, Ginger, Chloe, Bailey, Sophie and Zoe. It is interesting how all 10 of the female names comply with our 2 syllable recommendation, while only 6 of the male names do.

Once you have finally chosen the name for your dog, you should begin to call him by his name often so that he becomes used to the name and will then respond when called. As mentioned earlier, try to call him by his new name only when you are being affectionate with him, playing with him, etc. By doing so, he’ll learn to like his name and will be far more likely in future to respond to it than if he comes to associate your calling his name with being scolded or with anger in your voice.

Michael Rupkalvis manages the TakeCareofYourPet web site. The site provides information about a new product called Hope for Pets, a natural powder that is the top nutritional supplement available today to aid in optimizing our dogs’ health and longevity.