Is Your Pet's Name Overdone? Vet Techs Weigh in On Patient Names Online
We hope the Bellas of the world aren't taking this too personally.
Published Nov. 7 2024, 2:52 p.m. ET
Let's face it: sometimes naming your companion animal can be as serious as naming your firstborn child. In many ways, people treat pets as their children — so it's no surprise when people get defensive about their dog, cat, or rabbit's names.
Videos and viral posts on social media by veterinary technicians have sparked some debate online about which pet names are "overdone." Do you think your pet's name is on this list? Keep reading to learn more.
Vet techs take to social media to share pet names they think are overdone.
In a TikTok video from August 27, 2024, veterinary techs at the AAH Veterinary in British Columbia made waves after revealing their most overdone pet names. To many viewers' surprise, the number one pick was seemingly "Bella" (or, occasionally, "Stella").
Other names that were briefly mentioned in the video include "Diesel," "Max" and "Teddy."
After posting the video, the office added "We promise we still love pets named Bella" to its TikTok homepage, letting clients know that the video was all in good fun.
Similarly, a TikTok video posted on August 8 by user @lexiesutton99 echoed what other vet techs were thinking. When asked which dog names they were tired of hearing, vet techs responded overwhelmingly with "Bella" but also a few new names in the mix: "Gunner," "Luna," and "Milo."
Reddit users in r/VetTech doubled down on the anti-Bella agenda, with one commenter even writing, "Every Bella I’ve seen is either an overweight and poorly-trained Lab or a Little White Dog with a mean streak and a constant stream of unholy exudates seeping from both eyes."
Other users said Luna was a popular name, most likely attributed to the success of the anime Sailor Moon, which features a little black cat by the name of Luna.
In case you thought these vet techs were exaggerating, according to a report by Rover in 2023, the top 10 pet names in America included some familiar names: Luna, Max, Milo, Teddy, Charlie, Bella, Stella, and Bailey!
We're looking forward to the 2024 edition to see if anything has changed in the past year.
Vet techs also celebrate unique names they cannot get enough of.
If you're someone who likes out-of-the-box pet names, you might be your local veterinary clinic's favorite patient. A post on Reddit in r/namenerds highlights some of people's all-time favorite pet names.
"I know a dachshund named Chorizo, and knew a Basset Hound called Monday," one person wrote.
Another said, "I want to name all of my pets after types of cheese. Colby, Parm, Oaxaca, Mozza, Brie, Cheddar, you get the idea.... Now I'm hungry."
If you're not certain where to start but want to spice up your feline-or-canine-to-be's name, Reader's Digest has a list of 151 suggestions for unique pet names, including cute names, punny names, and pop-culture-inspired names.
Regardless of what you name your pet, what matters most is that you, the guardian of your furry friend, enjoy their name — and that they respond to it!
