You add a cute little non-human something to your household...and now it is time to name it.  So what do you do?  

Myself, I have always enjoyed the process, but have to admit to being lazy with one of my cats. He started off as Kitty Cat  (Bet you never heard that one before!)  progressed to K. C. and then mutated to Casey. Not a bad name for a cat as it turned out. One thinks of a cop...valiant and brave...my Casey is a wuss. But I love him anyway. Even if he is misnamed...

My neighbor's two year old toddler named their new kitten Tickle...think you can figure that one out. My son's kids named their new kitten Applesauce...don't know why. Maybe it was a new word they had learned that day?

So...what inspired you to pronounce the name upon your unsuspecting wards of the feather, fur and scale? Be it humorous, serious or creative...or just a name your pet actually earned...it's time to share the process!

Great idea, sounds fun! Here's my long list of pets and how I got their names,

DOGS: ORRY (named him after the character in North and South); MAIZY(my mom was with me when I picked her up and she named her); BOBBIE (she was born without a tail so the breeder had called her Bobbin, but I just call her Bobbie)

CATS: Oh boy, here we go, lol!:  CHIMERA ( I just loved the word and liked it's meaning in the dictionary, lol); PIGLET,TIGGER,POOH (my son named these); TUBBY(he was a little butterball kitten who has since lost the "baby fat";  TILLY (another name from North and South); EIGHT BALL(he's all black with one white spot); HERBIE(my son named him after the car); JULY(my son named him that cause that's when we found him); SISSY(my husband named her, not sure why);  DORA & DIEGO(my neigbor's son named them after the TV show); and finally ISHA (named after a doll I had).

Whew, long list, lol! I guess you can tell that I'm a cat lady!

Great post...thanks!  Love the idea of naming your dog Bobbie...it's like the old joke about what you call a guy floating in the ocean...Bob! Don't members of your family come up with odd names sometimes? My kids named one of our cats Purrsy...  :)

I am a cat person now, too...but still love dogs.  I had a dog I showed years ago who was a real livewire. I mean, this dog was a handful! The name I gave him as a puppy was one he lived up to...The Roadrunner...Roady, for short.

I really liked the name you bestowed on your black cat with the white spot. I raised mice (fancies) for awhile to try and understand color inheritance and ended up with one that was black and white...his face was amazing...black on one side...white on the other.  Named him Domino.

Haven't read Robyn Carr...what is her style? And are you a dyed-in-the-wool doll collector?

Henry was called Frodo at the shelter when we adopted him, but my husband didn't like the name Frodo and wanted to change it.  He nixed my suggestions of Sam, Pippin and Merry and decided Henry fit him - or Hank as we sometimes call him.

Suki  is another shelter dog.  She was an owner surrender and is 10 years old, so it was something she was used to.  (That's her in my avatar.) I like to call her all sorts of silly names - Kooky Suki, Big Sook, Sooky Girl,  Sukiyaki, etc.

Stanley was adopted from our vets' office in Brooklyn and that was his name.  It fits him, so we kept it.  He's more often called "Manly Stanley" or "Stan the Man" in our house.

Sadie was another shelter cat who was named when we adopted her.  She's often called "Sadie Milady" or "my petite panther" (she's black). 

Lily was called Bugatti in the shelter - once we got her home, I know why they named her after a fancy French sports car.  She's speed racer in fur.  This cat does not walk anywhere, she zooms!  I started calling her "Bug" for short, but my husband didn't like that name and insisted she was Lily.  So I compromised and called her Lily-Bug, which in the end became just Lily.

My cat Ernie, who lived with my parents and recently died, was all white and named after Ernie on Sesame Street.  I also had intentions of getting an all black cat to live with him and name him Bert. 

And lastly, my cat Dumba$$, who I had while I was in college was named so because he was a feral kitten who I coaxed into the house and when I was feeding him cheese, he bit my hand and I screamed out "You dumba$$!" and the name stuck.

Really enjoyed your post and have to admit "mixing it up" with my cats, too:

Gizmo               I call him Gizzie-Lizard, Lizzzzzard Man, Gizbeau, Giz-Giz and Giz M' Man...

Jack Frost       Named at the rescue where I got  him, I call him Jackie M' Boy, Action Jackson, Jack Kelley. Jack-Cat & Jack-Jack    

Casey                Casey-Cat, Casey-Lacey...  

LeeLoo              LeeLoo LooLoolee...he always picks up the affection in this one and  comes to me ASAP when I use it.  Cute!

Suki looks like a love...guess I should post pics of my foursome at some point. Laughed when I came to your Dumba$$ story! Cat never read the book "How To Make Friends and Influence People", evidentally. Did influence his future name, tho'....   :)

the dogs:

Eleusis (Luce) was called Grace at the shelter. bwahaha! i should have kept that name so at least she'd have a little ;) I was looking for something out of greek mythology to go with the poodle named Siren that I had (she was named by her previous owner) and that was feminine and would shorten nicely to a nickname. her full name is Siren's Eleusinian Mystery CGC.

Mushroom was named that by the rescue. it was too cute to change. his full name is Siren's Shiitake Happens.

Harvey was called Bear at the shelter. he's my old man dog so i just went through old man names until i found the right one. he doesn't have a full name yet.

the cats are Skorch (named for an online friend's sn), Jewel (her shelter name), Morgan (named by a roommate), Pete AKA Catzilla who I named and I have no idea why, and Figment (again, no idea why).

Hi Linda,

I love the name Roady for your dog, a great match!  The Robyn Carr books I read are contemporary romance, a really good trilogy about a small town in California. I really enjoyed it. And it was so much more than a romance, I hated to see the series end, so many characters I  liked.

I love dolls. My collection isn't as big as it used to be, I started with Barbie and moved onto other fashion dolls and now I am hooked on the tiny ball jointed dolls. I just love them. I even have a website devoted to my tiny dolls, lol! I have too much time on my hands, I guess, lol!

I always liked the name Sierra.  It seemed to fit her.  Also, she has a white spot on her head (it used to be between her eyes which is odd)  So, I guess she is a snow capped mountain now :)

Katie...sent you an e-mail but it has disappeared...comments were that I love Mushroom's full monicker...too funny! And your cats' names are very creative...    SKORCH???  Figment???  :)   Siren was a Canadian Grand Champion? Congrats! Standard? Toy? Miniature??

Brenda... Thanks!  Roady was a one-of-a-kind!  I would zero in on him with a raised eyebrow, we'd lock eyes, sometimes clear across our yard,  and he would run to me at a speed that was really scary.  I would stand my ground and just as he was almost to the point of knocking me down, he'd flip sidewise and I'd catch him. Great moments, lots of dog slobbers...  :)  Thanks...I'll have to look Carr up at the library after I get back from my vacation.  Dolls are a good way as any to spend  time...I collect vintage and leather postcards...  One of my best friends has a collection of dolls... way over 100. She had a "bonus" room upstairs and outfitted it completely for her collection...pretty neat!

Hi, Melody!  Sierra is a beautiful name...like the reference it gives to her markings...your little snow-capped friend! Funny how the markings change as the head matures and lengthens. We had puppies that started out as little bandit faces...the eyebrows were distinctively not joined, and they, like Sierra, would have a little blaze on the forehead. With time, most of them ended up with fleur-du-lis faces...really beautiful...

Ciao!   Linda

*grin* siren wasn't a champion of anything, except having accidents on the floor. she was a silver mini. she was cute as could be though http://escape.nightsfall.net/shudder/images/sirenclothed.jpg

the CGC in luce's name stands for canine good citizen, a certificate offered by the AKC for passing a basic manners test.

Katie!  LOL!!! At least Siren aspired to be good at something!  Just looked at the link and admit that under normal circumstances, I am not wild about dressed animals...but she looks downright CUTE!!! (There are always the exceptions!)

The AKC manners award that threw me off...when did that go into effect? Could you explain it a little further?

I got up earlier than I normally do this morning....too much caffeine from last night AND my crazy cats...am thinking of re-naming LeeLoo "Posh and Bother"...he was jetting around the place EARLY-EARLY! They are normally really mellow cats at night...but they have their moments.

=^..^=

My little schnoodle is named Pepper.  She has a black face and silver body, but we named her for her personality.  I've never seen a more disobedient, scrappy, peppery dog!  Sometimes she's sweet Pepper, Pepper belle, or Pepperista - depending on mood.  Generally in coversation, she's "the little Pepp".

There's another Pepper in our neighborhood - a very well trained, well behaved mid sized dog (the anti-Pepper).  My Pepper was fascinated watching her retrieve balls and bring them back to her person!  (Who knew dogs were supposed to bring the balls back?)   When I couldn't get my Pepper to come to me one day on the greenbelt, I kept calling her name, and the anti-Pepper obediently came to me, with my bad Pepper trailing right behind her!

Funny post!  Pepper appears to be THE name for your puppy!  There are always THOSE puppies and kittens...the ones that ultimately try your patience to the breaking point but have you smiling after them  anyway as they saunter on past you with either something in their mouths that shouldn't be there...or wet from some undefined source!   She sounds like a barrel of laughs...

Love your double-Pepper story..two for the price of one!  How old is this little dynamo?

Ciao! 

Linda

Dog:   Bernice Brisen - we wanted to call our dog "Bernie" before we even decided to get one.  She is a Pembroke Welsh Corgi so we wanted something that sounded British.  We ended up picking out a female so Bernice she became and "Bernie" she's been ever since.  Brisen is Welsh and is a character in the story of Camelot.

Cats:  Jean and Claude.  We ended up adopting twins from a litter that was abandoned by their feral mother.  I am a fan of Claude Monet and so to connect that, we ended up naming one Jean and the other Claude.  My husband loves Jean Claude Van Damm but I couldn't stomach naming a cat "Van Damm" and going to the vets office to have that called out.

Bird:  LB - I have no idea where this name came from since I adopted him from someone else that was "downsizing" their cockatiel flock.

"Love your double-Pepper story..two for the price of one!  How old is this little dynamo?"

Linda - she's about 2.5 years.   A friend of a friend found her by a dumpster when she was about a year old - no trace of an owner anywhere, and severely underweight and matted.  She really is one of THOSE dogs - a barrel of laughs to be around! 

She has "projects" from time to time, like seeing if she can jump from the coffee table to the back of the couch over and over until she succeeds, and has been caught pulling a single stick of gum from a pack, and meticulously unwrapping it to eat (all this on Mr. Catspaw's watch!).  And of course, when running away, if we call her name, she turns her head the other way, so she "can't hear" us!  Nor can she be seen doing something illegal if she scrupulously avoids eye contact this way!  When she wants my attention, she'll jump up and nip my butt, and if I'm walking and ignoring her, she lands her front paws on the back of my knee to slow me down. 

Of course our funniest Pepper story is when she ran away while visiting with the step-dog, Misty (The Perfect Dog).  When Pepp ran down the street, DH sent Misty after her.  Misty being slightly larger caught up to Pepp, tackled her and pinned her to the ground.   When DH got there Pepp was pinned on her back with all four paws flailing, and snapping at the air as she tried to get loose!  DH and Misty are still smug about that one!

I have always had this issue with pets-should I give them human names or non-human names? All of them are children to me.

Alexis is my 3 year old female, and named after a college friend of mine (with a wacky personality).

Ben is 3 and Alexis' brother. I only argreed to Ben because my husband wanted to call him Yoda the kitten of Frodo!

Ruby is 2. This was her shelter name when we adopted her, but we now call her Ruby Tuesday.

Gem is her brother (also 2) and we decided to keep his name, but more often than not he gets called Jammi because of all the jams he gets himself into!

I've always resisted naming mine immediately.  I feel like they'll let you know what the name should be.  It'll just fit them.

We've been looking for a brother for Pepper, and knowing what kind of dog we'll need to get, we've pre-picked a name, and will have to find the dog that matches it.  We call the project "Looking for Sparky."

My animals always name or re-name themselves.

Tessa (Basenji mix)  is Tessa May - my "white trash dog".  Her name just fits her.

Tosh (RB, Border Collie Mix) was named after Peter Tosh the reggae star.  It then morphed into Toshie which fit her.  I also called her Moosie Moose because she would whack you with her butt like labs do, LOL...(we think she was part Lab).

Mimi's (tortie cat) real name is Cleo.  but she's such a Mimi.

Peewee's (RB, black cat)  real name was Pooh, because he was such a Pooh.  But he was so huge, we used to say to him "Oh, you are so tiny, I can hardly see you!"  Thus, Peewee.

Sharon...Pepper is definitely my kinda dog! Butt nips, running off just because...but policing Misty is no slouch either...LOL!

Rebecca...they are like little kids...aren't they? Like the morph Gem is sliding into...  :)

Sharon...I usually name the pet when I bring it home...seldom have a pre-conceived notion...something just clicks. With LeeLoo, it wasn't that he looked like the red-haired woman in "The Fifth Element". But he was as perfect as she was supposed to be and he had the energy and awareness she portrayed. It worked...  Bada-BOOM!

Hey, L.G.!  Got a kick out of your post...it clearly shows the mechanics of landing on a name...

My very first dog was an English Setter. His registered name was Oldwick's Country Kwencher, call name Hoot.  I didn't get him until he was about 15 months old. I'd always wanted an ES and spent several months looking for one. I had been to a dog show when this 6 month old puppy had come out of the ring and crawled into my lap. I remembered his name was Hoot. A year later when I was ready to get my first dog, I had contacted a breeder in Illinois. She told me about a breeder a few hours from me and that breeder was the one that had Hoot and he was looking for a home. It was kind of like he was meant to be mine.

Now I have a Collie/Shep mix that we got from the shelter. He was the biggest puppy there. His name was Timber and I liked it and it really fit him as a pup because he used to love to chew on wood.

About 3 years ago we got our very first Chinese Crested. We couldn't decide on a name and it's hard without knowing their personality but we had narrowed the name down to Lucy or Charo. We are big Lucy fans but Charo just seemed like the perfect name for a Crested. So after getting her home we realized she really was a Charo. Registered name is Fairway Tee Time At Fore.

A year later we got a powderpuff Chinese Crested. He was born on Christmas Eve. His breeder named him Elf and try as I might I just couldn't think of anything else that fit him. So he's Am. Ch. Tri-Cas Elf Himself At Edencrest.

The following December we got Rumer, Paradice Hot Topic At Edencrest. I had already decided on her registered name and was trying to think of a call name for her when there was something on the radio about Demi Moore's daughter, Rumer.  That's how she got her name.

Valentine's Day 2006!  Elf and Charo had a romantic interlude. On April 15th Charo had 7 puppies. I had already decided that the litter theme would Be Buffy the Vampire Slayer characters. But I swore No Buffy! LOL The first puppy born was a powderpuff girl I named Willow, next was a hairless boy. Bright pink with white crest. You guessed it! Spike. I never figured I would have a dog named Spike. After that were Cordelia and Drusilla. Cordelia is now called T'qila. Then #5 was a blond puff. Yup, I had a Buffy. I thought that Charo was finished but she had 2 more which we named Xander and Oz.

Their registered names are all episodes or books of Buffy. Dru's registered name is Edencrest The Girl's Got Bite and Spike is Edencrest Return To Chaos.

On my Crested email groups we have lots of fun naming pups. The name game is really fun!

Oh, and we have a cat named Deisel. My son was a big wrestling nut when we got hime and it was either that or Undertaker. LOL Funny thing is Deisel always smells like oil.

Hey, Kathi!

What a great post.  As a former breeder of dogs, I have the feeling that you have done what I have done...lain in bed, looking at the ceiling in the dark,  trying to come up with the perfect name for a new dog/puppy instead of going to sleep. The possibilities are endless...aren't they?

Your "Hoot" story is really rather amazing...talk about coincidence...and I love Elf's registered name. It kind of rolls off the tongue in a rhyme!

You should post photos of your Buffy litter...too funny!

Okay...so what is your answer to the question, last line, of your post? Geeeee....maybe a book?  :)  Clever!

Linda

Linda-you're 100% right-they are just like little kids! what they won't do for attention or a treat....and how quickly they learn! I've had to relocate kitty treats several times because gem finds them and bites the tops off the plastic cans...it's like pixie sticks for kids!

Rebecca....

Gem sounds like a real character.  I always have kept the treat container in one of my bottom dresser drawers...when Gizmo was a little kitten, I would yell out 'treat time' and he would get up on his little short legs and place his front paws on "that" drawer. I have several photos of him doing it...

Got one for you...my son's dog, a golden lab....got bored when she was left alone for the day...so she bit off the noses of probably 10 stuffed animals my daughter-in-law had from her younger years. She also ate/trashed 3 dog beds before she understood proper  dog etiquette...

Go figure....

Hey Linda! Spike is in my Avatar and the picture on the left in my sig line is Dru,T'qila and Spike.  Elf is the one with the tongue on the right. You can also see pics of my kids on my website.  http://home.earthlink.net/~edencrest/ 

Hoot was one of a kind. He went everywhere with me. Flew across the US with me when we were young and foolish. I really miss him but I swear that Timber has his soul.  He passed away shortly after my son was born. Wow! That was 20 years ago!

The Nekkids have my heart now. They are so much like having little kids around. And unlike NORMAL dogs, Cresteds have very agile feet. They have long toes that are jointed and very flexible so it's almost like they have fingers. It gets them into lots of trouble.<G>

Timber gets along with the little ones great. He's like their granddad. LOL

Great post idea!

We have:

Pie - She's the *ahem* large grey kitty in my pictures and has had a bunch of names.  She originally belonged to my best friend and was named Marble.  When she needed to be rescued from BF's 2 yo and came to live with me, her name changed to "Storm Elizabeth."  (All my pets have "human" middle names.)  My boyfriend (at the time) and I were carving pumpkins when she was a kitten and she climbed into the pumpkin and had a new nickname of "Pumpkin Pie."  Fast forward 5 years and my DS was learning to talk and couldn't say "Storm" but heard me call her "Pumpkin Pie" and she became forever known as "Pie."  Poor cat probably has schizophrenia!

Oreo - Not very original, but yes, she's the black and white kitty with my DS in the pictures.  Full name is "Oreo Wilhemena."

Chase - He's our Tibetan Terrier (blond doggie in the pics) and was named that by his foster mom from the Humane Society.  We decided that it fit and added his middle name of "Dallas."

We had two dogs pass away in the last year.  They were litter mates and my DH and his ex named them "Calvin & Hobbes."