Friday, February 3, 2012

Puppy Names: Paws-itively Charming, or Barking Mad?

Chubbs the Bulldog, courtesy of www.dailypuppy.com

The name Luna evokes a shimmery, magical image for me---founded a great deal on the character of Luna Lovegood in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series, as well as the name’s lovely lunar meaning. Imagine my surprise, then, when Luna turned out to be an adorable pitbull puppy instead of a whimsical young girl. Lately, I’ve been struck by the increasingly human-like names of the dogs I encounter, especially on websites like the Dailypuppy.com, where members post pictures and stories about their beloved pets, including the aforementioned Luna. Where men’s furry friends once answered to names like “Blackie,” “Spot,” or “Fluffy,”  pet owners, perhaps in lieu of naming children, have begun to name their canines surprisingly chic names; names which one would expect to hear being called out by mothers in a posh playground in Manhattan, rather than printed on a shining collar tag. Many of those I encountered were names on my own list of favorites: Chester, Harvey, Philo, Rory. Nary a one of those names has a whiff of hound; with the line between canine and human names blurring, one has to wonder where the line between the two is drawn. Is it okay to name a child Sassie? What about Spunky?  Both are typical pet names, but the fact is that our pool of possible appellations grows daily wider and wider, and with celebrity babies like Apple and Blue, soon it might not be surprising to meet a dog named Lula and a child named Nutmeg.
So, from the wonderful litter of names I discovered on Daily puppy, I have picked out the most distinctive, human-like monikers for the discerning berries, as well as the names that only the most daring of parents would name their child, names that are still a little bit too “ruff” around the edges:
Human-Like:
Kingston
Wolfgang 
Milrose
Shiloh
Laika
Rory
Milo
Emmitt
Milou
Parker Posey
Cooper 
Chester
Lula
Bodie
Putter
Koa
Rueger
Luna 
Harvey
Murphy
Darcy
Bogart
Cleo
Hemingway “Hemi”
Philo
Winston
Samson
Nigel
Layla
Draco
Shyla
Lucy
Remi
Bridger
Lincoln
Hawk
Clea
Bjorn
Rua
Baxter

Axel
Stella
Tessie Mae
Doggy-Like:
Duke
Bitsy
Sassie
Fury
Spunky
Cowboy
Gonzo
Nutmeg
Phantom
Cricket
Rowdy
Magnum
Pepper
Six
Red
Diesel
Apple
Skippy