Many dogs answer to the names Bella, Lucy and Daisy. Those are the most popular names for female dogs in Pittsburgh and in the entire country. Buddy, Max and Cooper are the top male dog names in Pittsburgh, while the three most popular names nationally are Max, Charlie and Cooper.
The 2017 list comes from Rover.com, which calls itself “the nation’s largest network of pet sitters and dog walkers.”
I run dog name lists every year, and the top names don’t actually change that much from year to year or from city to city. But Rover personalized its email to me, coming up with some names and trends that are unique to Pittsburgh.
Most creative names for Pittsburgh dogs: Disco Queen, Indiana Bones, Duke McDribble, Ms. Honey Money Millionaire and Krypto the Superdog.
In Pittsburgh, cheese-themed names are up 40 percent, and coffee-themed names are up 15 percent. Health food-inspired dog names are down 30 percent.
But in Philadelphia, there’s a 74 percent increase for dogs given the name of that healthy green leafy vegetable: kale.
On the less-healthy end of the food spectrum, there’s a 74 percent increase in Philadelphia dogs named Scrapple, which is that mush made from pork scraps with broth made from hog heads and bones.
Rover did come up with some interesting analysis and observations.
“Rover dug into its database of hundreds of thousands of pet parents,” according to the news release. “Dominating this year’s national list were dog names that matched the top baby names. Human-inspired names make up a whopping 44 percent of all dog names in 2017,” which is a 57 percent increase from 2016.
Rounding out the top 10 female names in Pittsburgh, 4-10, are Bailey, Luna, Sophie, Penny, Sadie, Zoey and Lola. Nationally the names are Luna, Lola, Sadie, Molly, Maggie, Bailey and Sophie.
Male names, 4-10 in Pittsburgh, are Charlie, Jack, Tucker, Duke, Toby, Rocky and Oliver. Nationally it’s Buddy, Jack, Rocky, Oliver, Bear, Duke and Tucker.
At the bottom of the national male list were Mickey (at 99) and Mac (100). Names from television and movie characters and celebrities include Dexter (No. 22), Diesel (38), Thor (49) and Kobe (87). Coming in at 85 is Peanut, a rare non-person name.
On the female list, Allie was No. 99 and Oreo was 100. People and pop culture names include Layla (35), Athena (58), Jasmine (78) and Xena (98). Old-school dog names include Lady (38), Dixie (43), Princess (46), Honey (61) and Angel (62).
In 2017, 53 percent of dog names came from a celebrity or from characters in a movie, television show or book. That may be because 75 percent of dog owners are millennials, according to the survey.
Names from “Star Wars” movies were up 70 percent, with the top five in that category being Finn, Luke, Leia, Rey and Yoda.
“Game of Thrones” names increased by 12 percent. The top five are Khaleesi, Snow, Arya, Jaime and Sansa.
There was a 21 percent increase in bestowing the name of powerful women, such as Oprah, Madonna and Katniss. And Ivanka? Up 88 percent this year. “Wonder Woman”-themed names were up 44 percent this year.
Netflix’s “Stranger Things” also drew some naming fans: Barb was up 182 percent and Eleven up 166 percent.
Rover.com reports ’90s nostalgia is still big, with a 171 percent increase in dogs named Nirvana and a 45 percent increase in Kurt for Kurt Cobain, Nirvana’s frontman.
The most popular Spice Girls names, 1-5, were Ginger, Baby, Sporty, Posh and Scary.
Go to www.rover.com/blog/2017-top-100-dog-names/ for the complete list.
Holiday vet bills
Hope your pets had happy, healthy holidays. Not everyone was that lucky, according to Nationwide pet insurance. Last year its insured members spent more than $37 million on holiday season medical conditions.
Here are the average treatment costs:
Swallowing tinsel or ribbon, $1,759; pancreatitis from eating fatty table scraps, $763; toxic reaction to raisins or nuts, $562; electrical shock from holiday lights, $464; toxic reaction to chocolate, $400; and lacerations from ornaments, $379.
