Are you in the market for a dog? Well, first and foremost, congratulations! Making the choice to get a dog will easily be one of the best decisions you have ever made. But perhaps the biggest decision involved in bringing a new family member into your life revolves around the conundrum: “What should we name it?”. It’s easy to fall into the trap of giving it a classic dog name, such as Buddy, Scout, or Lily. Another potential pitfall is giving your dog a long name that then results in countless nicknames that no one can keep track of. Instead of falling into these patterns, here are six ways to help you choose a unique name for your dog!
1. Choose a Name That Ends With a Vowel.
This is something that most people don’t consider when naming their dog. Names with vowels at the end of them tend to change the tone of your voice when you call them. The shift in tone can allow the dog to determine the type of call you are making to them. Dogs are able to distinguish frequency ranges at a much higher level than we do, so catering to this can result in better obedience to your calls.
2. Stick With Two Syllables
Avoid long names! While it may seem cute to give your dog a long name such as “Lord Flufferton,” these names always end up getting shortened. With a long name like Lord Flufferton, there are endless nickname opportunities such as “Lord” or “Fluffer” or “Fluffy”. When tons of nicknames are assigned to a dog, they can get confused and as a result, neglect to follow commands that involve their name.
3. Don’t Pick One That Might Get Confused With Commands
Before naming your dog, consider the commands you will likely be using with it frequently. Does the name you have in mind sound similar to any common commands? Unless you want to deal with the headache of trying to train your dog to understand the difference between the two, you should pick a name that doesn’t rhyme with any commands. An example of this could be naming your dog Ray, which rhymes with “stay”. So, if you are trying to get your dog Ray to stay, he may just think you’re calling his name and do the opposite of the command you are making.
4. Choose a Name That’s Unlike Your Other Pets
If you have other pets living at home with you, make sure to name them all something uniquely different. This is especially important if you have another dog because it’ll cause tons of confusion between them. So, try to avoid names with the same beginning letter and number of syllables.
5. Perform the Nickname Test
Once you have landed on some name options, make sure to test out nicknames for all of them. After doing so, select one nickname that you will use for the dog other than its full name, and stick to it! People often give their dogs tons of nicknames because they think of them as time goes on but that can greatly confuse the dog. So, try to establish the main nickname you want to use for the dog and stay with it!
6. Think of Your Dog’s Personality
People often name their dog fully based on the appearance of it – the breed, the color, the texture of the fur/hair. Instead of doing that, try to use the personality of the dog as a factor in establishing its name. For example, if you have a dog that has tons of energy and runs around super fast, you could name it after a fast car.
So, the next time you’re getting a dog, consider these factors when naming it! The most important thing to remember is that once you’ve landed on a name and a respective nickname, stick to it!
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