# In some cultures are pets not given names? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 12, 2010, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184 "2010-05-12T16:09:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/21 "2010-05-13T15:59:02Z")
We have three guinea pigs and have never really attached names to them. We got the first one when my stepdaughter was pregnant and didn’t think she had room for a pet with a baby on the way, so we took her in. Her name was originally “Little Bit” but we never called her that, just “piggy”. Sometime later we got a second guinea pig to keep the first one company, so then they were “old piggy” and “new piggy”, or “big piggy” and “little piggy”. Then we discovered that “new piggy” was pregnant when we got her from the pet store, so when she had her pup (just one, thankfully) she became “mama piggy”, and the baby (who is pretty much full-grown now) is “baby piggy”. ---
**Author:** ![Lestrade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/94ad74/32.png) [@Lestrade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lestrade)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/22 "2010-05-13T16:09:29Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > We didn’t want to confuse by changing her name, so we kept it. Good lord, growing up I came up with new names for my dog regularly, she didn’t seem to mind. Everyone around me thought I was insane, but she always knew when I was calling her name. I do this with my cats, too; I’ve come to terms with being odd. ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/23 "2010-05-13T16:20:20Z")
> [@even\_sven](#): > > In Cameroon I named my cat “Paatu,” meaning “cat.” > > It drove people nuts- little old ladies would stop by my compound to scold me for giving the cat such a stupid name. Young children would insistently make up names to call it. Everyone would laugh their asses off when I called it’s name. All of this, despite the fact that Cameroonians generally didn’t keep cats as pets themselves and saw my keeping one as a pretty funny quirk. Which language? I collect words for “cat” in different languages, and Google tells me there are something like twenty-four of them in common use in Cameroon. ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/24 "2010-05-13T16:24:01Z")
Heh - I’ve enjoyed reading these responses. Seems like perhaps it was just due to the quirkiness/individual circumstances of the two customers. BTW: I have a cat called Howard. It’s a long uninteresting story. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/25 "2010-05-13T16:25:26Z")
In Spain it depends on the kind of pet. A dog or a cat will likely get a name; the ferrets my BFF’s dad kept were called “the big one”, “the thin one” and “the short one”; my canary had a name, but I’ve never known anybody who named their fish and often people who have more than one bird don’t really name them but, like our friends with the ferrets, just describe them. Once during a trip up a mountain when they were in summer camp, a dog started following the gaggle of kids and teachers around. The teachers said “don’t feed him and he’ll go away”. Of course, someone went and shared a bit of salchichón… and someone else a bit of chorizo… aaand the dog ended up down at the camp being fed everybody’s scraps. Since it was clear from the start that he wasn’t going home with anybody, they just called him Perro, which is a word every Spanish-barking dog knows. They asked the farmer who owns the field the camp was on whether he knew someone who’d want a well-behaved dog; the farmer took one look at Perro, checked that he did indeed know his basic commands (including basic sheepherding) and kept him. Renamed him Amarillo, yellow, which he was. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/26 "2010-05-13T16:38:36Z")
> [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](#): > > Which language? > > I collect words for “cat” in different languages, and Google tells me there are something like twenty-four of them in common use in Cameroon. There are something like 200 languages in use in Cameroon. Diverse place! Paatu (kind of like “PAH-too” but with the “ah” elongated) is a commonly used contraction of “Paaturu” (“PAH-too-roo” with a rolled “r”) which is Adamaoua Fulfulde for “cat.” ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/27 "2010-05-13T16:45:20Z")
[Walkin’ My Cat Named Dog](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPZVrmJ2HH8) ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/28 "2010-05-13T17:29:28Z")
I think there’s a big difference between animals who are intelligent/aware enough to recognize that they have names and animals that we name just to tell them apart, like hamsters. If you have three dogs and name them Dog, Mutt, and Canine, those might not be very good names, but they are names, and if you use them, the dogs will figure it out. It doesn’t matter what you name your fish. They will never know that Wanda swims twice as fast as Sylvia, no matter how hard you cheer from outside the tank. And animals bright enough can recognize nicknames in addition to their own names; I call my girl dog “girlie,” “missy,” etc., and her brother never looks up; I call him “baby” and “buddy” and she doesn’t glance my way. They know who’s who. ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/29 "2010-05-13T17:33:42Z")
The only reason my cat has a name is because my wife insisted on it. I feel no particular urge to name animals, especially when there aren’t enough around to cause any confusion Maybe this just makes it easy for me to objectify them. So I don’t feel bad about calling my cat a slut every time she sleeps in the middle of the living room floor on her back with legs splayed. But she does have a name and I still don’t feel bad. I guess I’m just a bad person. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/30 "2010-05-13T22:54:39Z")
> [@Sigmagirl](#): > > I think there’s a big difference between animals who are intelligent/aware enough to recognize that they have names and animals that we name just to tell them apart, like hamsters. If you have three dogs and name them Dog, Mutt, and Canine, those might not be very good names, but they are names, and if you use them, the dogs will figure it out. It doesn’t matter what you name your fish. They will never know that Wanda swims twice as fast as Sylvia, no matter how hard you cheer from outside the tank. > > And animals bright enough can recognize nicknames in addition to their own names; I call my girl dog “girlie,” “missy,” etc., and her brother never looks up; I call him “baby” and “buddy” and she doesn’t glance my way. They know who’s who. That’s true. Our smaller cat is Nikki. For some reason, we’ve both started referring to her as Pookie. After a short while, she started responding to either name. I think at this point anything that sounds like “xyz-KEE” would probably work. And yes, Nikki/Pookie comes when called. Comes running, usually. It’s pretty easy to train a cat when they’re treat-oriented. Calling her name means we either have some kitty treats for her, or dropped some tasty human-food on the floor. Either way, she comes hustling! ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/31 "2010-05-13T23:07:55Z")
I’ve gotten a surprising number of chuckles from this thread. > [@Lestrade](#): > > Good lord, growing up I came up with new names for my dog regularly, she didn’t seem to mind. Everyone around me thought I was insane, but she always knew when I was calling her name. I do this with my cats, too; I’ve come to terms with being odd. I have a dog named Alfie, but when he was a puppy I usually called him Muttley (as in Dick Dastardly’s sidekick) and over time I contracted it to Mutt (he’s a purebred miniature American Eskimo, so people looked at me funny when I yelled his “name”). I had to leave him with my mother when I went to college, and now I don’t call him anything when I’m visiting (unless I’m referring to him in conversation). I just do the come-here whistle. ---
**Author:** ![flano1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f14d63/32.png) [@flano1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flano1)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/32 "2010-05-13T23:29:31Z")
On the emotional attachment thing, one of my sisters would only name the farm animals that were not to be eaten. The ones being fattened up were consequently given names such as, Christmas Dinner, casserole, or Easter. One of my favorite lines about naming animals is in the movie Local Hero. No spoilers. You’ll have to guess. No prizes. Just satisfaction. ---
**Author:** ![Lazlo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lazlo/32/9678_2.png) [@Lazlo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lazlo)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/33 "2010-05-14T01:05:13Z")
> [@niblet\_head](#): > > I stayed with a host family in Mexico for a couple of months once. They had a big brown mutt dog that they kept in the backyard to protect the chickens. Poor thing. He always looked so sad and I would sit outside and smoke and pet him. > > I asked my host mother “Como se llama?” > > “Perro.” > > “Si, entiendo que es un perro. Como se llama??” > > “Perro.” > > “Cual es su NOMBRE?” > > Weird look like I’m retarded. > > “Perro!” My sister named her dog Pregúntale. We’d get dirty looks from relatives when they’d ask the dog’s name. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/34 "2010-05-14T11:28:29Z")
My friend named his dog Diogie (‘D’ ‘O’ ‘G’) but he answers to Dio. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/35 "2010-05-14T12:22:37Z")
In my town we have a bronze statue of a dog. It is named ‘Guess,’ of course. ---
**Author:** ![EvilTOJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/36 "2010-05-14T13:24:59Z")
I’ve named my chickens. I have Noodle, Nugget, Patty, General Tso, Raptor Red, Lacy and Dottie. They’re all layers, not broilers. I had two roosters named Peckerhead and Shutthefuckupyousonofabitch. ---
**Author:** ![Skara\_Brae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Skara\_Brae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skara_Brae)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/37 "2010-05-14T13:44:22Z")
> [@EvilTOJ](#): > > I had two roosters named Peckerhead and **Shutthefuckupyousonofabitch**. I thought all roosters were called this. Especially around dawn… ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/38 "2010-05-14T14:44:00Z")
My in-laws in Mexico name some of their pets and not others. Dogs all get names. The ferret had a name. The ostriches didn’t have names, but then they weren’t really pets; they were just living there temporarily so their mother wouldn’t step on them. None of the little cage-birds had names. Ah, and my brother-in-law had a monkey before I got to know him, and it had a name. ---
**Author:** ![apollonia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2bfe46/32.png) [@apollonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/apollonia)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/39 "2010-05-14T15:08:34Z")
> [@Skara\_Brae](#): > > I thought all roosters were called this. Especially around dawn… No, no. Some of them are named **Goddammit!Shutthefuckup!** and some are named **ShutthefuckupbeforeImakeyouintochickensalad!** ---
**Author:** ![TerpBE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc8723/32.png) [@TerpBE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TerpBE)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184/40 "2010-05-14T16:08:20Z")
I once had a kitten that I wanted to name “dog”. The ex wouldn’t go for that, so we compromised with “Cujo”. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-some-cultures-are-pets-not-given-names/539184.md?page=3)