What's in a name? Plenty, saw dog owners.

[IceyBlueSibes]

What's in a name? Plenty, say dog owners


By Brian Saxton
THE NEWS-TIMES

Once upon a time his name was Smudge because of the small black spots on his ears and along his back.

Then Karen Eberhardt came along and rescued the brown miniature dachshund from what she described as "a bad situation."

A new home meant giving Smudge a new name, so Eberhardt, who lives in Danbury, went through a list of boys' names and finally chose Jimmie.

"I guess he chose his own name in the end because when I said 'Jimmie' he just responded and jumped up on me," she said recently.

Like many dog owners, Eberhardt, 40, took care in giving her 3-year-old pet the right name.

Statistics released last month by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene -- and reflected by some towns in the Danbury area -- show Max, Lucy and Buddy to be among today's most popular names for dogs. Molly and Maggie are also big in these parts.
Other greater Danbury pets are named after drinks -- Bourbon, Brandy, Guinness and Whisky. Some are named for vehicles -- Bentley, Beamer and Harley -- others for musicians -- Elvis and Dylan.


Some pets are named for their size and temperament -- Boss, Bruiser, Burly Bear, Biggins, Beastro, Brutus, Trouble and Dogzilla, and their opposites -- Cuddles and Honey Pie.

Some names conjure an ambiance -- Cloud, Shadow, Smoke, Skye, Star and Sunshine.

Some names are the stuff of history -- Cleopatra, Caesar, Capote, Dante, Darwin, Bismarck and Bogart -- or of literature -- Macbeth and Hamlet.
Maybe Java would like to meet Bagel and Butter.

Redding assistant town clerk Kerry Miserendino, whose department issues dog licenses, said 11 dogs named Max are registered in town, along with 14 named Lucy and eight named Buddy.

"Zoe is very popular and we've got a lot of Tobys," said Miserendino, who has an 18-month-old golden retriever named Sally.

"My family spent some time trying to come up with a name," said Miserendino. "We voted on several until everyone was in agreement. I think it's important for the whole family to like the name."

In Newtown, where 1,745 dog licenses were issued this year, assistant town clerk Susan Shpunt agreed.
"People are serious about the names they give their dogs," Shpunt said. "I think they put a lot of thought into it."


Shpunt said this year's list of registered dogs includes names like Intrepid (a German shepherd) and Buster (a boxer). One poodle mix is called Puddle and another boxer is called Rambo.

Bethel town clerk Lisa Bergh said there was once a woman in town who named her pugs after vegetables such as zucchini, Brussels sprouts and broccoli.

Chris Iannucci, a veterinary technician at Brookfield Animal Hospital, finds many people choose names they can call out easily when a dog gets lost in the neighborhood.

Still, Iannucci has seen exceptions.

"I remember once seeing a chocolate Labrador retriever called Hershey, a pit bull called Sadie and a black lab named Midnight," Iannucci said. "People do come up with the most unusual names."

Laurie Lore of Brookfield has a 5-year-old chocolate brown miniature poodle her daughter named Layla, after the song by Eric Clapton and Jim Gordon. "Naming a dog is like naming a child," Lore said Thursday after picking up the dog from a Danbury grooming center. "It's just as important. They're part of the family."

[rmci]

I agree! It took us a while to pick names.

I knew a great dane named Baby and a min dachshund named Bruiser. Oh, and a min pin named Rowdy