ShopPlease Don’t Name Your Bird Dog That
A good name may not make your pup a better bird dog, but a solid name for your pooch will keep your hunting buddies off your back.
Got a new bird dog puppy at home? Having trouble picking out that perfect name? The name you choose says as much about the bird hunter as it does about the bird dog. Choose wisely and you’ll be the envy of your hunting party. Choose poorly . . . well, your hunting buddies won’t likely let you up for air.
I know that ragging on a hunter’s bird dog can lead to a fist fight. If your dog is named one of the following below, then let me please apologize right now-
A) Yes, the performance of a dog is more important than its name.
B) Yes, you are probably more secure in your masculinity than I am and can indeed hold your head high as you call “Muffin” back to you with a rooster in her mouth.
C) Yes, having a popular name isn’t a bad thing. You probably did think of it first.
D) Yes, my female dog has the name of retired male baseball player that last took the field almost 15 years ago (Trammell). I am indeed living in the past.
E) Yes, my bird dog has an affinity for skunks and is sprayed by them regularly. I should probably have named her “Stinky.”
Without further adieu, here’s a short list of hunting dog names I would personally avoid.
Rooster
You’d think the problem for a pheasant hunter owning a dog named “Rooster” would be obvious, but I encounter a “Rooster” every year. The problem with the name surfaces any time you hunt pheasants in a group. The dog’s owner shouts “Rooster” only to have his entire hunting party jerk their heads and gun barrels to the sky only to see blue. Meanwhile, the obedient “Rooster” returns to the oblivious owner as instructed.
Drake
Although naming your dog “Drake” doesn’t cause the same problem as “Rooster,” it is likely the most common dog name on the planet in today’s bird dog world. I actually like the name, but “Drake” must represent 40 percent of the hunting dog world. Coming in a close second in “commonly good” names are bird dogs named after an owner’s favorite brand of shotgun; “Remy,” “Winchester,” “Beretta,” and “Benelli” for example.
Note: According to VPI Pet Insurance, the top 5 most common names for male dogs in 2009 were Max, Buddy, Rocky, Bailey, & Jake. The top 5 most common names for female dogs in 2009 were Bella, Molly, Lucy, Maggie, & Daisy.
Rascal, Trouble, Dizzy, Tank, or Rampage
Ever met a dog that lived up to its name? Well name your dog “Rascal” and I guarantee that bird dog will live up to all the negative connotations of being a rascal.
Buck, Huck, Luck, Puck, or Tuck
Yelling your dog’s name should never sound like a swear word. Be careful about what rhymes with “Tuck.”
Precious
Head-over-heels for the gal you are married to, engaged to, or dating? That’s great; but, draw the line at fluffy names for the family hunting dog. Remember, you’re the one that’s gotta call the dog while afield with all your buddies around. If your gal is a bird hunter too, then she’ll understand from the get-go.
Tags: Bird Dog Names, bird dogs, dog names, female dog names, hunting dog names, hunting dogs, male dog names, naming your bird dog, naming your hunting dog, pheasant hunting, Pheasants
41 Responses to “Please Don’t Name Your Bird Dog That”
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We have named our dogs (Labs) after famous generals or admirals. Ike was our first, named for Dwight Eisenhower. Mac, named after Douglas MacArthur. Our current pup (10 weeks old) was named after a WW II submarine ace, Flotilla Admiral Otto Kretschmer. Otto, for short.
Jochen,
Great and original ideas for bird dog names. Thanks for reading, commenting, and being creative. Love it!
My last dog, a German Shorthair was named after Clint Eastwood movies. The Belle City Drifter Josie Wales. “Josie” for short.
Dan,
I love it! Now that’s the kind of creativity a guy’s bird dog deserves. Well done.
Great article, but I did get a English Setter from a hunt club in KS that had named her Hazel. I tell you what, she acts like what you picture a Hazeel would be around the house, but in the field she hunts hard and I have yet to come across another Hazel in the field.
Thanks David. Our Director of Corporate Sales has a Gordon Setter named Hazel. It’s a good name.
O.K., so I named Rooster (Rooster J. Cogburn) BEFORE I started pheasant hunting. See, when we quail hunt, we don’t scream out “Rooster” in the field. And actually, since my dog loves to retrieve, he just gets a “heads up” when the guys yell out Rooster. He heads right over for the retrieve. Next pup will be named after Patton – much like Jochen’s idea. And for pointers, you don’t want anything that sounds like “whoa.” I’ve hunted with a Beau and a Moe and it’s very confusing to the other dogs.
Elsa,
You are right on the money about “Whoa.” I forgot all about that one. Great advice!
I have two labs one by the name of Rowdy Boy Breaux. (ROWDY) who is actually the exact opposite of the name. The other is named Hardcore Gooseman ZINK (ZINK) is a Tank of a dog! Hardcore and full of power. My new edition is a Boykin Spaniel from Brandywine Kennels. Her Name is NOLA JAZZ…. I will call her Jazz. How she will turn out? Who knows? Hopefully with a smooth and steady disposition…….
Tommy,
Great names. I’m sure Jazz will be smooth and steady . . . she’ll be a toe-tapping good bird dog!
we named our puppy RNK’s The Black Cloud and call her Storm. I definatly like Patton and Ike too great names.
Cory,
Storm! Now that’s a great name. Well done!
Ours isn’t a bird dog but she came to us named Little Girl. I feel weird yelling for her and sometimes get odd stares.
My dog isn’t a bird dog but he acts like one, his name is Blue Bayou, Bayou or Blue for short
Justin,
“Little Girl,” . . . that’s a tough one. I feel your pain!
King and Bruno for my two boys. Both are Vizla’s.
God I can’t wait for season to start!
I like one syllable names much easier to yell if required. I have a retired lab named Kate and young Weimaraner named Ike. I picked Ike because of Eisenhower.
My next English Setter will be “Crumpet” shortened to “Crump” with a full name of “Tea N Crumpets”
My chocolate water dog is “Skeeter”…I’ve seen too many dogs named “Beau” obvious problem there with no and whoa commands. Great post! Thanks!
I purchased a 4 month old brittany who carried the name “Six” at that time. She was the sixth pup in the litter. It was unique and one syllable which I like. So I kept “Six” as the name and registered her as “Randy’s Sixth Sense”. She hunted with me for 13 years before I had to put her down last September. She was a special one!
One day my 4 year old looked at me and said “I want a hunting dog named SKID” So when I brought home our Wirehaired Pointing Griffon his name was SKID. Probably wasn’t the best idea, especially when I give the Mark command!
Tram does seem to be a magnet for the skunks in the field. Perhaps her field name is Stinky and her house name is Trammell. But maybe she just knew you needed to research for the blog to find the perfect skunk removal system for all the other dog owners out there. She’s just trying to help.
Being a Drathaar fan, I’ve had a Fritz, Dieter, and Hans. Current dog is Kraus. I 2nd John’s thoughts, as I can’t wait for the upcoming season!
i have two labs im currently training for duck and geese .. both came from my local spca .. my black labs name who just turned one is decoy .. and the choc lab .. is named kansas.. both names fit their attitude perfectly ….. happy hunting .
I have a well bread registered UKC/AKC Labrador Retriever pup my daughter named Loki. “AL’S SILVER DICES LOKI” My daughter liked the name because it was one of the actors names on the movie DOGMA. A friend told me Loki was a common name in accent times of the Vikings of a person who was mischievous in there acts. And he lives up to it! I think its a great name for him. One of the worse names I named a dog was KEY. I named him KEY because it was my favorite chewing tobacco at the time. Didn’t sound bad until my hunting partners stated saying it fast over and over. Then it sounded like Kitty I got a lot of laughs from my friends over it. And the jokes would not end!
I have a Pudelpointer named Gunner shortened version of “Highlife’s Gun Runner”. Not very original but it suits him, and yes, he is an Arsenal FC fan!
About to get my Chessie soon, looking at the names Dixie and Apache for a female.
My boys are/were named Norm (huge, kinda lazy red lab) and Clavin (crazy hyper yellow lab)…still giggle just thinking about Dad yelling across the field for them!
I like the name Apache. That is such a good name I was just thinking of new names,for another lab that im getting this fall. That name is at the top of my list! Its going to be my first Black lab and I sure didnt want to call it OBAMA! Thanks Danny thats a great name.
We named our dog ARGO, we wanted an good solid ‘All Terrain’ name.. and that he is… hunts in All Terrairn… field, water, woods…
I have a large red lab named Kola. I asked advice from a gentleman who has Native American background as to the word for “Friend”. Kola has a nice hard sound easy to hear through those windy winter hunts and I haven’t found that it rhymes with any commands. On the down side I’ve found that it has a different meaning (not so nice)in another language. There are days where that definition fits well too.
My dad was a Civil War re-enactor for the 10th Tennessee. After he passed away last year, I named my Chocolate Lab pup Tennessee’s 10th Dixie Lee, aka “Dixie” in honor of Dad’s passion for American history. Him and I spent many hours in the field with a Nikki, Heidi, Tammy, Ebby and Bella (all Labs) and I thought it was the least I could do.
Our last name is Williams, so Hank seemed like the natural choice for our vizsla (akc name Linden’s Family Tradition). Not the most original, but fitting nonetheless.
We like unique names an my husband added German words into our dogs names since they are GSPs. They are named Indy and Edel (akc names are Top Gun Indy Lieber Aufgestapelt and Edelweise Wachel Von D). Usually not another dog named that when we are hunting.
A Mollisol is the name of a deep rich black prairie soil. A friend named their family’s female black lab this, Molly for short. I always thought that was a good one.
I think a 2 syllable word is, as a rule, a good name for dogs. It is more audibly distinctive than a single syllable word and not too long or complicated to say repeatedly. Also, when calling out a dog’s name, whether in the yard or in the field, a 2 syllable name allows the use of a 2 pitch (high, then slightly lower) voice inflection that can be heard better than a single pitch.
I have three GSP and they are ‘Izzo’, ‘Jud’, and ‘Jo’. The female for JoAnn P McAuley who was the womens BB coach at Michigan State until Duke stole her away – quess I should have named my girl Suzy! Izzo is Jud’s dad and is the best dog I have ever owned, he is now retired from the field and the combo of Jud and Jo are taking over just fine!
I have a yellow lab that I originally called Mac, but because of his affinity for humping when he was a pup my wife kept saying he’s “getting jiggy with it” so when we registered him we named him ‘gettingjiggywitit’ we call him jiggy or jigs. Despite the name he is a phenomenal upland dog who actually points. I have a second lab puppy a chocalate female that we named ‘Chocalate Candy Bell’ or Belle.
We have a German Shorthair named “flash”. She does live up to her name, you open the door and she is off like a flash.
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