# A Portuguese Water Dog **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 10, 2006, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-portuguese-water-dog/339384 "2006-01-10T21:33:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![spingears](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@spingears](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spingears)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2006, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-portuguese-water-dog/339384/1 "2006-01-10T21:33:17Z")
Amazon lists a new children’s book to be released/published May 1st. The title is “My Senator And Me : A Dog’s Eye View Of Washington, D.C.” by Ted Kennedy. The word on the street is that it was actually written by a ghost writer, a Portuguese Water Dog who follows his master’s every move. His name is SPLASH! “SPLASH”? WHAT?\*\* “SPLASH”!\*\* ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2006, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-portuguese-water-dog/339384/2 "2006-01-10T21:44:40Z")
Someone on my LJ friends list just had a similar reaction. I don’t get it. Sure, he’s trying to be clever naming a water dog Splash. But I don’t see what the big deal is. Am I completely being whooshed? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2006, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-portuguese-water-dog/339384/3 "2006-01-10T21:54:13Z")
Jesus wept. Never mind, I just started thinking bigger picture. heh. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2006, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-portuguese-water-dog/339384/4 "2006-01-10T21:56:30Z")
[And Ker-PLUNK!](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=353282) ---
**Author:** ![Absolute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2006, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-portuguese-water-dog/339384/5 "2006-01-10T22:43:25Z")
> [@scout1222](#): > > Someone on my LJ friends list just had a similar reaction. I don’t get it. Sure, he’s trying to be clever naming a water dog Splash. But I don’t see what the big deal is. > > Am I completely being whooshed? 😕 [The Chappaquiddick Incident](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Kennedy#Chappaquiddick) It’s sort of bizarre that Kennedy would do anything that might remind people of this, because he still gets criticism about it. ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2006, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-portuguese-water-dog/339384/6 "2006-01-10T22:56:32Z")
I guess you didn’t notice my backpedalling in post #3. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2006, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-portuguese-water-dog/339384/7 "2006-01-10T23:13:51Z")
It’s not the first time a D.C. dog “wrote” a book. Remember Millie, Barbara Bush’s dog, and her book? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2006, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-portuguese-water-dog/339384/8 "2006-01-10T23:39:01Z")
Portugese Water Dog? Pshaw! I’m not falling for this one; not after the Sea Monkey fiasco. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-portuguese-water-dog/339384/9 "2006-01-12T15:17:00Z")
It’s common to give Porties have nautical or Portuguese-themed names. “Splash” and “Rio” are like the John Smith of Portie names. I’ve got two Porties. One has a nautical-themed registered name, but both have rather ordinary call names. Some hardcore Portie people have expressed surprise that neither of my dogs have a name like Sailor, Rudder, Vasco, or Scooner. ---
**Author:** ![Duke\_of\_Rat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Duke\_of\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke_of_Rat)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-portuguese-water-dog/339384/10 "2006-01-12T15:39:51Z")
I think it’s also been said that a monosyllabic names are more easily recognized by dogs when giving commands. So “Underwater Search and Rescue” was probably thrown out as too cumbersome. I’m just kidding, Senator Kennedy has had decades of heckling over that incident. I’d hope people would at least leave his dog out of it now, if not drop it altogether.