petMD.com Celebrates National Puppy Day with Popular Puppy Names

MIAMI, March 23, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- In honor of National Puppy Day (March 23), petMD.com reveals the most popular puppy names and the meanings behind them. In the past year, readers submitted more than 5,000 puppy names to petMD, ranging from traditional dog names like Spot and Fido to more obscure monikers such as Quinnsaki and Zaboomafoo.

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To get a better understanding of how pet owners choose names for their new pups, petMD recently polled its readers about their puppy name choosing style. Approximately 40% of respondents said they look for creative or unique names, perhaps to give their pets a sense of individuality. Human monikers took 28% of the vote, a surprising second place considering 8 of the top ten names are also human names. Rounding out the field, 18% of readers said they prefer descriptive names like Fuzzy or Brownie, and just 12% remain fans of the more traditional dog names.

Without further ado, the top five boy puppy names and top five girl puppy names according to petMD readers are as follows:

Boy Puppy Names

1. Ace – Ace is a human moniker commonly given to dogs. Two of the most famous Aces include dog actor, Ace the Wonder Dog, and Batman's loyal pooch, Ace the Bat-Hound.
2. Aztec – Possibly named after the Aztec civilization, Aztec is not a common moniker for children, making it a unique puppy name (except for the fact that it made our list of popular boy puppy names).
3. Max – Max is Latin for "greatest" and a popular baby boy name as well, making it another popular human name for "great" male puppies.
4. Byron – Byron is yet another human name, possibly coming from poet Lord Byron, famous for his wildness and debauchery. Byron is a terrific puppy name for any rambunctious pup.
5. A.J. – A.J. has become a popular human name in its own right, though originally the initials probably stood for something. Perhaps perfect for the puppy that is an "awesome jumper"?

Girl Puppy Names

1. Bella – Bella is French for "very pretty." Though these days, girl puppies (and babies) named Bella are likely named after the main character from the widely popular Twilight series of books and movies.
2. Abby – Short for Abigail, Abby is consistently one of the more popular girl names given to babies.
3. Zoey – Meaning "life" in Greek, who wouldn't want to name their puppy Zoey? For baby girls, the name has risen in popularity from 409th in 2000 to 47th in 2010.
4. Buttons – A long-standing favorite for dog names, Buttons may come from the phrase "cute as a button."
5. Daisy – A daisy is a flower, and a name commonly given to baby girls throughout the 20th century. Daisy's popularity briefly declined, but is again on the rise.

To find out where other dog names fall in the mix, visit the petMD Puppy Center. Readers are encouraged to submit new names and let petMD know which name they like most by clicking on the heart next to the name.

About petMD
petMD is a leading online resource focused solely on the health and well-being of pets. The site maintains the world's largest pet health library, written and approved by a network of trusted veterinarians. petMD was founded to inspire pet owners to provide an ever-increasing quality of life for their pets and to connect pet owners with pet experts and other animal lovers. petMD is a subsidiary of the Pet360 family of brands, which also includes PetFoodDirect.com – the most complete pet food and supply retailer online, and NationalPetPharmacy.com– a fully certified, full-service pet pharmacy delivering pet meds, vitamins and comprehensive pet health and wellness products.

Contact: Kelly Lange, [email protected], 610-234-4114

SOURCE petMD.com