Popular dog names 2019

3 mins to read

Bringing home a new pooch and not sure where to start when it comes to choosing a name? Here’s our top picks from the popular puppy names, female and male dog names and some of the more unusual doggie monikers.

Health and vitality

Picking out a name for Fido is a big responsibility. You’ll be using it to train them, recall them in the park and possibly saying it with dismay a few times during their puppy phase! There are plenty of sources of inspiration, so whether you prefer to go wacky, popular or perhaps adopt a human name, we’ve got plenty of suggestions to get you started.

Popular female dog names

While many like to steer clear of names on any ‘hot lists’, there’s often a good reason names wind up on them. That said, you can also use the list below as your goto guide if you'd rather avoid a common dog name.

Based on Bow Wow Meows pet tag registration list, these are the top 20 most popular female dog names in Australia. What's interesting is how many are also popular names for human babies, a trend that's continued from 2017's pet names.

1. Jessie
2. Molly
3. Chloe
4. Bonnie
5. Lucy
6. Sasha
7. Sally
8. Tess
9. Daisy
10. Zoe
11. Coco
12. Missy
13. Holly
14. Rosie
15. Bella
16. Sophie
17. Ruby
18. Maggie
19. Shadow
20. Lady

Popular male dog names

Also based on Bow Wow Meows pet tag registration these are the top 20 most popular male dog names in Australia and again, there is a definite trend towards popular human names:

1. Max
2. Sam
3. Jack
4. Jake
5. Toby
6. Oscar
7. Charlie
8. Jess
9. Zac
10. Monty
11. Tyson
12. Buddy
13. Ben
14. Buster
15. Harry
16. Rocky
17. Beau
18. Rusty
19. Shadow
20. Simba

Classic dog names

Another way to select a great name for your new four-legged friend is to look to the classics. Yes, Rover is on the list!

Classic male names:

Benji
Champ
Charlie
Fido
King
Lucky*
Milo
Patches
Rex
Rocky
Rover
Rufus
Shadow*
Socks*
Spot*

Classic Female names:

Coco
Daisy
Fluffy
Lady
Lassie
Lucky*
Missy
Roxy
Shadow*
Socks*
Spot*

* Names are commonly used for both genders

Unusual dog names

If you’re partial to naming your pooch a weird and wacky name based on their behaviour or looks, this list may be a great place to start. While it may take a little confidence to bellow these names at the local dog park, you’re certainly less likely to hear someone else shouting out the same name. These names came from a database of over 500,000 pet names:

Barfolomew Barfonopolis
Brewster Chewybear
Cheesebro
Cheeto Batman
Choo Choo Boo Boo
Daisy Belle Fluffbottoms
Doc Howliday
Dunkin Butterbeans
Empress Tzu Tzu
Farrah Pawcett
The Other Dude
Tumble Bumble
Tupaw Shakur
Webster Doodledoodle
Yeti Sphaghetti
Zeus The Deuce

While only an owner could love many of these are names, Bow Wow Meow's top unusual names list from last year also has some cute options:

Peanut Butter
Teddy Bear Biscuit
Albert Pamplemousse
Apricot Strudel
Baron Von Thumper
Basil Fawlty
Kransky
Roxy RottenBottom
Sir Benedict Cumberbatch
Telly-Beyoncé
Toffee Towers
Tonks the Beautiful Lady
Uggboot
Zac Efron

Even if the list itself doesn’t inspire a name, it does raise an interesting concept – why go with a single name when you could choose a double-barrelled moniker?

Further sources of inspiration

Not sold on any of the above? Fear not, there are plenty more places you can go for inspiration. Given the trend for human names for pups, why not check out the annual hottest 100 baby names lists. Nameberry has a searchable list to trawl through that is continuously updated.

Names from TV, films, books and music

Movies can also provide inspiration; think Thor, Groot, Pennywise, Dash or Loki. Alternatively, you could turn to novels for popular character names (hey, they’ve been influencing baby name lists for years). Or perhaps you fancy a TV inspired title such as from Game of Thrones or Adventure Time. There’s no shortage of names to pick from. Even sports stars, popular actors and actresses and rock stars may just provide that elusive, perfect pooch name. If all else fails, there’s more than one pooch parent who has simply gone with a personality trait when it comes to picking a name – take Diva, for example.

Things to consider when choosing dog names

When you’re choosing your perfect pooch name, there are a few things to consider to save yourself embarrassment, or having to go through the painful process of attempting to teach them to respond to a new name.

First up is the golden rule for any parent naming their “baby,” be it fur or two legged – saying their full name out loud to ensure you’re avoiding any unfortunate pairings.

Secondly, think about how influenced you are by their puppy appearance and consider whether it’ll still suit when they are a fully-grown dog. On this note, breed may come into play. Killer may well sound more ironic than heroic on a dog that develops a huge fluffy coat and wide eyes at the age of one, as would Fluffy on a sleek Doberman.

Lastly, if you’re going for a trending name, or perhaps looking to the latest and greatest in the arts or sporting worlds, think about how happy you’ll be with the name when your dog is 10 years old and you may no longer be completely obsessed with the object of your pop culture influenced affections.

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