If your dog is named Max, Charlie, Buddy, Bella, Lucy, or Daisy, then you are not alone. Those are some of the most popular names for dogs in 2015 according to Rover.com. The website poured over its own database of research, surveys, and articles, along with external sources to come up with the year’s biggest trends. Human names are the #1 choice for pet parents as that figure reached 49% in 2015 – up from 19.88% in 2013 and 21.17% in 2014.
According to their other surveys, 44% of US households have at least one dog, while 94% of ‘pet parents’ consider their canines as part of the family. 5% admit to dressing up their pooches. More than 30% of pet owners have prepared people food for their pet with 7% doing so regularly. And the American Pet Products Association estimates we spent $60.59 billion on our pets in 2015.
10% of all dog names were inspired by popular culture with The Hunger Games, Harry Potter and Star Wars showing the most increase. Names inspired by Twilight, The Walking Dead, and Game of Thrones not so much this year.
If you really like food, then your dog might be named Ginger, Pepper, Peanut, or Oreo. If you are more into drinks, then you might have a Guinness, Brandy, Porter, Whiskey, or Kahula scratching at the door. For sports fans, Chase, Wrigley, Champ, Bruiser, and Dodger were favorites. And for those that preferred calling their pets by some other animal name, Bear, Teddy, Moose, Foxy, Tiger, Panda, Raven, Cricket, Puppy, and Monkey all made the top 10. I’m sure plenty of people called their dog “Dog” but it did not make the rankings.
No results were listed on how many owners named their dogs based on characters in Steve Martin movies (see classic scene from The Jerk).
And if you are not yet convinced that we absolutely love our animals, nearly 1 in 20 owners have social media accounts for their pets.
TOP 100 FEMALE DOG NAMES
- Bella
- Lucy
- Daisy
- Molly
- Lola
- Sadie
- Maggie
- Sophie
- Chloe
- Bailey
- Luna
- Lily
- Roxy
- Zoey
- Stella
- Penny
- Coco
- Gracie
- Zoe
- Abbie
- Ginger
- Ruby
- Mia
- Sasha
- Lilly
- Rosie
- Ellie
- Nala
- Emma
- Pepper
- Piper
- Lulu
- Lady
- Annie
- Layla
- Riley
- Princess
- Lexi
- Maya
- Maddie
- Dixie
- Olive
- Izzy
- Roxie
- Belle
- Angel
- Callie
- Ella
- Cookie
- Missie
- Honey
- Millie
- Kona
- Marley
- Holly
- Sandy
- Shelby
- Dakota
- Harley
- Phoebe
- Scout
- Charlie
- Minnie
- Callie
- Willow
- Jasmine
- Sugar
- Athena
- Winnie
- Hazel
- Trixie
- Mocha
- Josie
- Peanut
- Sydney
- Katie
- Macy
- Cleo
- Fiona
- Shadow
- Baby
- Allie
- Hannah
- Mimi
- Cocoa
- Lacey
- Bonnie
- Madison
- Grace
- Penelope
- Delilah
- Nina
- Heidi
- Gigi
- Sally
- Lucky
- Ava
- Sassy
- Oreo
- Nikki
TOP 100 MALE DOG NAMES
- Max
- Charlie
- Buddy
- Cooper
- Jack
- Rocky
- Toby
- Duke
- Bear
- Tucker
- Oliver
- Jake
- Bentley
- Teddy
- Riley
- Milo
- Bailey
- Buster
- Dexter
- Leo
- Winston
- Murphy
- Louie
- Zeus
- Lucky
- Oscar
- Cody
- Harley
- Jackson
- Henry
- Baxter
- Gus
- Jax
- Sam
- Sammy
- Bandit
- Bruno
- Gizmo
- Diesel
- Marley
- Ollie
- Jasper
- Roscoe
- Beau
- Hank
- Rusty
- Shadow
- Brody
- Rocco
- Blue
- Scout
- Moose
- Rex
- Otis
- Loki
- George
- Finn
- Romeo
- Bo
- Simba
- Tyson
- Apollo
- Boomer
- Tank
- Hunter
- Ziggy
- Ace
- Joey
- Thor
- Luke
- Peanut
- Samson
- Gunner
- Chance
- Rufus
- Rudy
- Oreo
- Koda
- Prince
- Sparky
- Frankie
- Benny
- Chico
- Brutus
- Copper
- Coco
- Chase
- Chester
- Kobe
- Brady
- Cash
- Bubba
- Bruce
- Ranger
- Maverick
- Mickey
- Mac
- Benji
- Scooter
- Chewy
For complete rankings and more tidbits, check out “Who’s Top Dog?” from Rover.com.
And to all my loyal readers, Happy New Years! Thank you for following me these past 12 months and I look forward to bringing you many new stories, insights and news in 2016. May this year bring much love and many doggie kisses into your life.