Thats MY name !

Murphy was so confused this morning he heard someone calling his name who wasnt me . It wasnt anyone he knew so he stared at the lady and was most surprised when a little papillon came running out of the bushes. He stared at me in a most indignant fashion I had to laugh.

Living here Murphy is not a name you hear anyway and most Stabijs get solid Friesian names like Bieke,(also the general name for Stabij in Fries) braam , gijs, thijs bente haico etc.

We chose Murphy as his pet name because its the place where OH was born.
So why did others choose their dogs name and how often do you hear another dog with your dogs name?

When Mr F was a little boy, he wanted to be a lumberjack when he grew up. He doesn't like me telling people that, so keep it quiet.

Timber is actually quite a nice name for a dog, except people look nervous when I call him back in the woods.

Jimmy was called Jimmy when we adopted him.

Jasper was originally going to be DS2's, and he didn't like 'people names' for dogs like Stan or Ben, but we couldn't think of any 'dog' names we liked. Eventually we settled on 'Jasper' or 'Toby' - 'Jasper' is unusual for a human, and DS2 was OK with Toby. Of the two pups we had the choice of, one looked like a Jasper and the other looked like a Toby, and we chose Jasper partly because he looked like he'd have a rougher coat but also because Toby seemed relatively quiet. In retrospect, that's like talking about a tiger being relatively friendly but hey, you live and learn (Unless you really are talking about a tiger in which case you probably do neither)

We meet quite a few Jaspers, and I did once have a problem with recall when he made friends with another Jasper - I called Jasper and ended up with both, then the other owner called and both dogs went to him, and so it went on for quite a while!

All my dogs over the years have been rescues so have already been named, except 2 I adopted as youngsters when I lived in Ireland, both Alsatian crosses, one I called Diva, because she was and the other I called Reuo, it means 'to set free'(in Greek if I remember) and she was a total free spirit!

Misty always lifts her head up and looks around when the tv weather forecasters say it’s going to be misty

I don't know how we chose Dennis but I remember when his breeder asked what we were going to call him she started to cry because that was her husbands name and he had recently passed away. We saw it as a sign so stuck with it

we chose Olive because of the Olive trees in Spain

We wanted a Welsh name. One that non Welsh could spell and pronounce and easy for the pup to learn too. It took a long time to agree on Harri (it does fail the spelling test!). He was very nearly Dylan but then I remembered what Dylan Thomas was like.....

I have long thought that dog's names that end with a 'Y' or 'I' sound make good names making a 'happy' sound. And as a Folly is something that does not really have a practical function but is striking in apperance I decided that would be her name.

JudyN said:

We meet quite a few Jaspers, and I did once have a problem with recall when he made friends with another Jasper - I called Jasper and ended up with both, then the other owner called and both dogs went to him, and so it went on for quite a while!

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That's almost tennis with dogs!

I don't really know why Teddy is Teddy. We considered calling him Red, Oscar, Marshall (my 3 year old's idea), Alfie or Teddy. And he just ended up being Teddy. I think because I wanted something cute.

Molly was a Molly for a year before we got her and she knew her name so I couldn't change it. As it is (when she could still hear properly) if anybody other than me called her, the first thing she did was to look at me for permission to approach the person, even if it was my OH. She's the kind of dog that it doesn't matter that her name is written on her tag, it's no use to you unless you're me, and most of the time I don't need her name or any words at all because she's reading my body language and hand signals

Dudley has his name because that is where he was born. Not my choice I have to say, but it suits him

eingana said:

Molly was 'Molly' for a year before we got her, and she knew her name, so I couldn't change it.
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Not picking on U, @eingana , but dogs can learn a new name in a day or 3 at any age of life. In fact, dogs can & will respond to more than one name.

After a terrifying experience with my excessively-friendly therapy-pet, Beau, who left the deep granite sill of the bank [3-ft off the ground] while i was inside cashing my paycheck, & came out to find him already BETWEEN THE PARKED CARS & about to cross an insanely-busy midday one-way street, choked with trucks & cars... I decided my next dog would have a 'private' Name, as well as a public Name.
Beau didn't commit a crime in his own mind - one of his many fans saw him from ACROSS THE STREET, & the eejit called his Name - not 'come!', nor 'here!', nor any other cue, but it pried Beau right out of his sit-stay & onto the sidewalk, then into the street.
Another 2 or 3 feet, & he'd have been dead or close to it.

My Akita got 2 names, one given freely to all & sundry, & one just used by me, alone.
Cues attached to her public Name were optional; cues tagged on her private name overrode all other cues.
It saved me a lot of trouble, & clarified things for the dog, too.

I can also categorically state that adopted dogs can have bad associations with their current name, which can make training such essentials as recall very hard for adopter AND the dog. // Changing to a brand-new name with zero associations & then making it a very happy thing, never tainted by scolding, unwanted consequences for the dog, etc, makes all training & indeed, all use of the dog's Name a Good Thing.
Over more than 40-years as a trainer, there have been many adopted dogs who absolutely blossomed with a new name, & new, happy associations that were built into it. It doesn't take long, & it's the only way to be *sure* that the dog's name is unblemished in their ears.

Besides, think of all the nicknames, shortening, endearments, etc, we use every day with our dogs - "babe", sweety, Mick for Mike, poopsie, Shady for Nightshade, etc, etc. // Dogs cope with all these oddities daily, & aren't confused by it, but i still tell my clients to use the dog's CALL NAME before a cue, so the dog gets the heads-up that the next thing will be what they're to do, ATM. It's only fair to have that clear signal - endearments are for convo, call names are for cues.

- terry

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