Be careful who you call for…..
We know a bit about dogs at Auckland Kennel and Cattery, and we’ve met quite a few over the years. Something we have noticed of late is that if we go into our dog runs and call “Bella”, about six dogs come bounding up.
Well, this is actually quite an exaggeration, but you get the idea: there seems to be loads of dogs called Bella in Auckland, and across the country.
We went to the papers
We therefore decided to do a wee bit of research to find out if that was actually the case, or if we were all going a little crazy.
Thanks to our friends at RNZ, Stuff and the Herald, and our trusty paper boy, the research didn’t take long, and we were soon proved sane after all.
And the most popular dog name is …..
According to the papers, there are about 35,600 dogs registered with the Christchurch City Council, and 558 of those dogs all boast the same name: Bella. Of the 111,000 dogs registered in Auckland, 1,659 of them are called Bella. This is the fifth year in a row that Bella has been recorded as the most popular dog name with Auckland Council.
Bella is also the most popular name for dogs in Dunedin, Nelson and Tauranga.
And if that’s not enough, the online portal, Neighbourly, did a survey and guess what? A total of 5,340 pet names were contributed and Bella took out the top spot as being the most popular name in the dog, cat and overall categories.
Bella is popular globally. It’s the most common dog name in the UK and Sweden and in the US, it has topped a list published by insurer VPI since 2009.
In Auckland, the second favourite name is Charlie, and Max is in third place. In Christchurch, second and third most popular dog names are Poppy and Molly. There are 418 Poppy pooches and 394 called Molly. Max, a former number one, is now in fourth place.
It’s all in the name
In Auckland, there are more than 19,000 different names registered for the city’s 111,000 dogs. 13,359 of the names are one of a kind.
We’ve been working with many dogs for many years and it would be safe to say, the weird and wonderful names are a nice change. At the kennels, we appreciate our owners who come up with something original and quirky as the name for the dogs we get to look after. It’s great when a dog, or cat, comes in with a name that makes us laugh.
Some of the unusually named pooches the newspaper listed included Sherlock Bones, Chewbarka, Israel Dogg, Miss Chief, Lady Flurricane, Albus Dumbledog, Richie McPaws, Choppy McChopsalot Choppalopagus, Sir Licks A lot and Grumbles.
What a mouthful
However, those names are a bit of a mouthful. A good, sensible two-syllable name, like Bella, is easier to call across a large park or down a stretch of beach. You just might need to be sure the dog that comes bounding up not you is actually yours.
Check our dog care out
If you are thinking about boarding your dog with us while you’re on holiday, or bringing them in to have fun at our doggie daycare, why not pop in, meet us and have a look around? You’ll be able to see for yourself why our Auckland Kennel and Cattery is so popular, and not just with Bellas. No appointment is necessary.
While your dog is staying with us at our boarding kennels, we give them exercise and playtime twice daily, and loads of cuddles.
