[ClemBurmingham]

I don't know.  My dog's name was spike. My dad's dog was josh.  We had a cat when I was young named crystal.  I think most of the other pets we had were just names as they came to mind and sounded good.  I look after my mom's dogs.  One is a poodle named Little-bit, but I just call it by poodle.

 

[azpirito]

Never, please ;-P!!!!!

 

[KingStyles]

I dont mind human names as long as it is not a full human name ending in there own last name. Nothing like hearing someone call out ... come here Frederick Pope Jones the 3rd.
 
My 3 year old named my current dog. His name is Bow Wow.

 

[DaBomb77766]

I remember way back when, we named our cat Pokey.  In fact he was named after "pokemon," but nobody really knew that.
 
Our current dog is named Rosie.  I guess some people have that as a nickname, it'd be a far nicer name than Pokey.

 

[Uncle Erik]

I had a friend who named his two cats "This" and "That." This cat and That cat were (IMHO) pretty funny. Unlike children, it won't hurt the animals' feelings.

Mai Tai isn't something I'd name a daughter, but everyone seems amused. It certainly doesn't hurt the kitty's feelings and she is horribly spoiled, anyway.

 

[sridhar3]

I once knew a man who wanted to name his dog "Kid" and his kid "Dog".  Now that'd be awful.

 

[jax]

This is Jax  who I had from when she was 4 weeks to when she passed away 13 years later in her sleep (hope I go that way).  I guess it's not really a human name, but she seemed to like it, and it definitely suited her well.  I could also use this post to answer that thread about how you picked your user name.  Her name came to me in a dream a day or two before my partner  at the time gave her to me for my birthday.  I've never been dogless since then.  I can't imagine life without a dog.  I like people names for pets just fine, but never really used one myself.  Our current dogs are Cassius and Captain.  Both came with their names as both are rescued, but the names fit well so we kept'em. Our Bullmastiff was named after my wife's grandfather, but not really a "people name' - Diesel.
 

 

[rroseperry]

^Such a great pic!

 

[Lunatique]

Definitely case-by-case, since it depends on the animal's personality/appearance. Recently, I had a white long-haired female cat named Muriel, because it suited her beauty (named after Muriel Foster, the favorite model of 19th century painter J.W. Waterhouse). But the short-haired male cat I named Prowler, because he looked agile and alert.

 
More photos of Muriel and Prowler here:
http://www.ethereality.info/ethereality_website/photography/critters/critters_2009.htm
 
 

 

[Uncle Erik]

There's a longhaired black and white tomcat that's been turning up more and more often. Of course I'm feeding him.

But this is the dirtiest cat I've ever seen. Out in the vacant dirt lot, he throws himself down and rolls around in the dirt. But he loves bellyrubs and has never shown a hint of aggression. I'm going to haul him in to be fixed and I'll also have him shaved. His coat has mats and knots. Besides, it'll be hitting 110°F and higher pretty quick. A shave would probably feel good.

Though since he's such a dirtball, I think "Pigpen" would be a fitting name.

If he knocks off the spraying after being fixed, I'll bring him inside. He's so good-natured that he deserves to be a pet. Mai Tai likes him OK, though I might pass him off to my sister. Her cats are nice, but neither is a true lapcat. Her family would like a cuddly one.

 

[JamesMcProgger]

I had a gf who named her (and her brother's) 5 dogs with human names, it was the first time I saw something like that and when I ask them why, they say "because we treat them like people" wich was kind of true, more like babies I'd say.
 
IIRC the names were:
Milly
Ruffo Doroteo
Thomas Ernesto 

Bruno (Brunito)
-cant remmeber the other
 
and of course they all carried the family lastname.
 
I'd rather give them funny and catchy names. besides, imagine if your dogs name is Thomas and then you befriend a guy with the same name... 

 

[Dynobot]

Now-a-days this affection for pets [dog's mostly] has gotten so strong that I would not be surprised if people not only gave their dogs human names, family last names but went so far as to adopt them as they would a human being and get social security numbers for them....as well as medical and life insurance of course.
 
Mind boggling to me, but to each his/her own...
 
Enjoy!!

 

[Zarathustra19]

When I eventually get my ideal dog (English Bulldog), I plan on "Winston", "Byron" or "Alfred" depending on his disposition.  I think dogs especially end up displaying human characteristics in their mannerisms, so why not name them accordingly?

 

[DaBomb77766]

Quote:

When I eventually get my ideal dog (English Bulldog), I plan on "Winston", "Byron" or "Alfred" depending on his disposition.  I think dogs especially end up displaying human characteristics in their mannerisms, so why not name them accordingly?

Personification!  Well, I wouldn't say that the dogs are displaying human characteristics per se, as much as you see their actions as being human.  It's kind of like how if people train chimpanzees to smile and such, to the chimps, what they're doing is completely unnatural - we think that they're smiling because they're happy but they're just moving their mouths in such a way to make people think they're happy.
 
Of course, all mammals have emotions just like people, and may in fact share certain traits with them, but I think it's more due to us putting our own traits onto them - after all, it's rather difficult to imagine another human who doesn't act human, likewise with animals not having any human characteristics whatsoever.  But there's no harm in feeling that dogs are acting like people...it could just be that they're learning to do things their masters are doing, even if they don't understand what they mean.

 

[BobSaysHi]

Quote:

In my personal experience, there is nothing so stupid sounding as having a neighbor repeatedly ( for hours, seemingly) calling for their stupid pet (probably a finicky cat type) to return home in a sing song - voice, first high and higher pitched , Bob-by , and then again though in lower octaves, over and over and over - Bob-by- Bob-by - Bob-by - Bob-by ad nasauem ~
 

STOP YELLING AT ME!!! I want to stay outside.
 
and to stay relevant to the thread, my dogs name is Buster. Names aren't important though. Hell, I respond to like nine or ten different titles (bob being one, despite it not being my real name). I need to chose one and stick to it.