# My poor dog Tray

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-poor-dog-tray/35149>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [September 30, 2000, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-poor-dog-tray/35149 "2000-09-30T17:26:21Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![scratch1300](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dfb087/32.png) [@scratch1300](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scratch1300)\
**Post date:** [September 30, 2000, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-poor-dog-tray/35149/1 "2000-09-30T17:26:21Z")

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In old literature, a common name for a dog is Tray. What’s the origin of this?

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**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\
**Post date:** [September 30, 2000, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-poor-dog-tray/35149/2 "2000-09-30T22:54:19Z")

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Brewer, in his **Dictionary of Phrase and Fable** says that it either comes from _trag_, a word meaning a runner, or from the Spanish _traér_, “to fetch.”

He did not specify a language for _trag_ and I did not find it in the OED (under trag or under tray).