Top 10 Most Popular Dog & Cat Names

The top 10 most popular dog names and cat names of 2009 have now been released.

One of the most difficult but fun dilemmas that come with taking on a pet is the question "What shall we name him/her?". How do you usually come up with a good dog or cat name? Often a name is chosen based on its personality. I can see a couple of names in the lists that jump out for that naming technique: Tiger and Shadow. Both are in the top 10 cat names. I imagine a cat named Tiger to be quite boisterous but with soft side. Shadow, on the other hand, would be a timid cat that shows great loyalty and love to it's closest family. Shadow wouldn't say boo to a goose and would disappear at any unusual sound or the introduction of a new person to the house.

Whilst there are a few pet names that use the personality naming technique, almost all of the names in both the dog and cat top tens are actually people's names. So how do you come up with a 'human' name for a pet? Do you name them after a family member, friend or do you just use a name you've heard that you like? Since there were more people names than the made up pet names (such as the vintage name of Rover for a dog) I wanted to see if there were any similarities between the top 10 pet names and the top ten baby names.

As yet (January 2009) the baby names for 2009 haven't been released but here are the lists for the top 10 baby names for boys and girls in 2008:

Surprisingly there are more commonalities than I thought there would be:

Chloe - the second most popular cat name - appears in both the cat and dog top 10. This is reflected in the the baby girl's top 10 at a lower but still significant number 6.

Oliver reached number 4 in the cat names top 10 and number 2 on the baby boy's top 10. Olivia, which is number 1 on the girls names may also have contributed to this position as the 'male version' .

Sophie just makes it in tenth place in the dog top 10 but has a slightly higher placement of 7 on the baby girl's name list.

Although it's not the most comprehensive comparison it certainly seems that a lot of the popular baby boy's and girl's names are making an impact on the most popular cat and dog names. I might also say that, based on the top tens we have here, the human names seem to have more of an impact on cat names than dog names. The 'human' pet names do appear higher up on the top 10 cat list than the top 10 dog list. 

Overall Max seems to be the most popular choice of pet name.  Whether you have a dog or a cat it doesn't seem to matter, Max is a popular name for both cat and dog owners. According to my source, Max has been proudly sitting at the top of the list as the number 1 dog name for the last 6 years. All dogs named Max can release a gentle whimper as they are beaten by Bella who is crowned queen of the dog name for 2009. Bella also makes an appearance in the top 10 cat names, purring in at number 3.

Girl dog names are very prominent, making up 70% of the top 10 most popular for dogs. This is much less visible with female cat names in the list.

Whatever and however you name your pet, have fun doing it!

If you're getting a new puppy or cat you might want to look at insuring them. You can compare pet insurance on our homepage.

If you like this article please share it with your friends by using this handy widget:

Article written by Alexander K

Related Articles:

Dog Car Safety & Travelling With Your Dog
Pet Insurance Confusing You?
Pet Insurance Cover: What's Best Cover For Your Pet?
Lifetime Pet Insurance: What Is It and Is It For Me?
Do I Need Pet Insurance?

sources:
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nations-largest-pet-insurer-reveals-top-10-dog-and-cat-names-of-2009-80594152.html
http://www.statistics.gov.uk