Potty Pet Names

The good news is that there is no pet naming protocol.

The bad news is that there are some pretty potty names out there to keep pet owners and friends of fur and fun scratching their heads a little or else laughing out loud!

Let's face it, there are plenty of potty names from which to choose when it comes to naming your pet:

Large Lapdogs: Big Foot, Butkas, Godzilla, Goliath, Hannibal, Hummer, Jurassic, Marmaduke, Shrek, Tank, Zeus or Peanut!

Spotted Sensations: Crumpet, Dappled, Diddybopper, Fleckles, Harris Tweed, Moo-Moo, Motely, Picklepuss, Pizza, Polka Dot, Rorschach, Speckles, Spatter

Small Somethings: Biscuit, Chairman Meow, Crouton, Doodle, Flopitty, Foo-Foo, Furball, Furrlicity, Hairy-Pawter, Gumball, Jaspurr, Kewpie, Longhair, Newt, Nibbles, Nigglet, Phlizz, Putt-Putt, Richochet, Shortnround, Smidgen, Skeeter, Squirt, Tater Bug, Widget or Moose

Noisy Critters: Calliope, Crooner, Gabby, Foghorn, Howl-A-Ween, Jabberwocky, Jack-Hammer, Lady Chatterley's Lover, Moon Curser, Piccolo, Pillow Talk, Roaratorio, Screaming Meemie, Tootledum, Trombone, Yelper, Yippers, Yowler

Not-Your-Average Pet: Buzzard Breath, Chomp & Romp, Clawed D'Pussy, Cleopawtra, Dandy Prat, Drama Queen, Grisabella, Fusspot, His Nibs, Le Boofhead, Magnificat, Magoo, Miss Chevious, Monty Zuma, Napoleon Bonapaws, Pandemonium on Paws, Phu-Kat, Ragamuffin, So-Sue-Me, Tommy Holedigger, Whatsit

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Image Credit: Amanda Jaffe@flickr.com

Pets, like people and places have wonderfully weird names.

They have plenty of personality and peculiar features to capitalize upon, so it's not hard to picture just what kind of pets might fit these hilarious handles:

"Accubitis" or "Ankle-Biter" -- any pet that prefers your bed to their box

"Bullstrode" -- a plump pet with a distinct gait

"Cannibal" -- any critter that eats you out of house and home

"Dunkworthy" -- anything that can swim without a life preserver

"Elbow Room" -- any critter that is guaranteed to outgrow your backyard

"Forlorn Hope" -- any animal companion you acquired in a game of chance or after a divorce settlement

"Gargoyle" -- a perfectly harmless but plug ugly pet

"Huffty-Tuffty" -- any beast with a bad attitude and bad breath

"Inexpressible" -- any animal that comes with a Latin name you can't pronounce

"Kissing Comfit" -- any pet that hisses

"Juggernaut" -- any critter with sharp teeth and a vice-grip

"Lickspittle" -- a lippy lizard or lounge hound

"Mopsey" -- any floppy-eared furry thing that needs a haircut badly

"Nimrod" -- any critter with a nice disposition but precious little between the ears

"Orling" -- any pet whose hair has great difficulty passing through a comb

"Prince/Princess Prig" -- any crabby critter with a mind of his/her own

"Queer-Gotten" -- any pet of uncertain parentage

"Rip Van Winkle" -- any creature that hibernates or naps too long

"Scratchland" -- any pet that comes with fleas for free

"Terry Dactyl" -- any pet whose origin is a deep dark secret or is thought to be a cross between a horse and a hound

"Unky" -- any creature with a sad look or depressed disposition

"Vaniloquence" -- any dog who takes great pride in barking more frequently than his/her owner

"Wagwump" -- anthing with a tantalizing tail that knocks over furniture with a single swish

"Yaffling" -- any pet who's particularly peckish about what constitutes a satisfactory meal

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Image Credit: theRussian!!!@flickr.comr

-- According to a recent survey conducted by the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association, the number of American households that own pets has increased from 56 percent in 1988 to 63 percent in 2006, and spending on pets has more than doubled since 1994 - in excess of $40 billion annually. (So, how much do you spend on feeding your Chia pet per year?)

-- Did you know that over the course of a dog's lifetime, his/her name will be used more than 40,000 times, and that 20% of new pet owners will want to change the name of their dog in the first year? (At least you won't have to go through all the rigamarole of a time-consuming and sometimes expensive legal name change like humans, so think twice be careful name your rotweiller "Fluffy"!)

-- Men give masculine or macho names to their pets (which probably has a lot to do with the fact that most of their pets are males...which reminds me..."'Lion King' where are you?").

-- Cat registration is not required in San Francisco, so if you want to name him "I Left My Heart in San Francisco", (it probably means that no one will come after you for copyright infringement but just make sure you can hold a few good notes).

-- Dogs who bite are most often named Rocky. According to San Francisco Health Department records, of about 375 dog bites recorded from 1994 to 1997, seven were perpetrated by a Rocky. Next were Mugsy, Max and Zeke, each tied with six bites.

Most Popular Male Dog Names (2007):

1. Max
2. Jake
3. Buddy
4. Rocky
5. Sam
6. Bailey
7. Lucky
8. Casey
9. Buster
10. Gizmo
11. Charlie
12. Rusty
13. Toby
14. Jack
15. Oliver
16. Sparky
17. Barney
18. Murphy
19. Shelby
20. Zeus

Most Popular Female Dog Names:

1. Maggie
2. Molly
3. Lady
4. Lily
5. Princess
6. Missy
7. Dakota
8. Jasmine
9. Abby
10. Sasha
11. Andrea
12. Sadie
13. Lucy
14. Daisy
15. Kiki
16. Coco
17. Annie
18. Chelsea
19. Sophie
20. Tasha

The most popular pet names in 1998:

Chewpr, Chomp, Death Breath, Furrgus, Ginger Spice, Kitty-Wan-Kenobi, Kosta Lot, Pugwash, Slobberchops, Thunderpants

Source: Snarkhunting.com

As for unusual pet names, they certainly grab the attention of folks looking to adopt.

One "Petfinder" member, Forever Home Rescue New England in Walpole, MA, had trouble finding a home for a dog named Buck. After they changed his name to Joe the Plumber during U.S. Presidential election in the fall of 2008, more people began viewing his picture and he was quickly adopted.

A very sad-looking dog named "Woe Izmee" and a family of cats dubbed "Domino, Ditto, Etcetera", as well as "And-so-on and And-so-forth" ranked highest in originality in our survey of more than 12,000 shelters and rescue groups in the "Petfinder" network.

Top 10 Most Unusual Pet Names:

1. Woe Izmee
2. Gwyneth Poultry (a duck)
3. SoSueMe
4. 54cent Swee'T
5. Iamaredneckwoman
6. Angry Chef Soup
7. Ms. Cornflake Especially
8. Bon Jo Flea
9. McLovin
10. Joe the Plumber

Top 10 Most Unusual Group Pet Names

1. Domino, Ditto, Etcetera, And-so-on and An-so-forth
2. Ebay, Google, Yahoo and Spam
3. Felony, Warrant and Trespass (in honor of the police department, which supervises the shelter)
4. The Xerox puppies
5. Chiclit, TicTac, Extra, Wrigley and BigRed
6. Elbow-Toe and Neck Face
7. Sara, Andi and Patti ("Serendipity")
8. Footloose and Fancy Free
9. Noodle, Macaroni and Spaghetti
10. Barney Miller, Nicole Miller and Sienna Miller (all rescued from puppy mills)
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Image Credit: Bill Mayer@flickr.com