University news

A nationwide survey of pet names has found that Max and Holly are still the most popular dog’s names in Scotland – despite a growing trend for celebrity inspired names.

According to experts at the University of Glasgow’s Vet School, Max, Ben and Sam are among the most popular names for male dogs and Holly, Molly and Bonnie, the most common for bitches.

Charlie secures the number one slot in the Top 10 chart for cats, followed by Molly and Jack.

It is the first time data of this kind has been published in Scotland. Vets at the University of Glasgow compiled the lists from faculty records dating back 10 years.

The findings also showed that while traditional names such as Max, Holly, Charlie, Holly and Jack have remained popular for more than a decade, an increasing number of Scottish pet owners are choosing to call their pets, both cats and dogs, after celebrities, historical and fictional figures.

During the past three years, names such as Al Capone, Clooney, Indiana, Gandalph, Harry Potter, Beckham and Del Boy have become increasingly popular, according to Dr. Ian Ramsey, director of the University’s Small Animal Hospital.

Dr Ramsey said: “At the Vet school we have seen many thousands of animals over the years, but some names just kept coming up. So, we thought it might be interesting, as well as a bit of fun, to keep a record of our patients’ names.

“Although it is funny to visualise what a dog named Gandalph might look like - tall, long white beard and walks with a stick - I think the name that sticks most in my mind, was a dog called ‘Wee Dog’ which he was anything but. He was a Neopolitan Mastiff which is a huge dog.”

In the last 10 years the most common names are as follows – in order.

1. Max
2. Ben
3. Sam
4. Holly
5. Molly
6. Charlie
7. Bonnie
8. Lucy
9. Jake
10. Murphy

The data also reveals that Scottish pet owners are embracing more modern and in some cases, distinctive names. “If you look at what people were calling their dogs born in say, 2006 then we see that the stalwart name - Max - has been slipping in popularity losing ground to new comers like Tilly and Alfie,” said Dr Ramsey.

The university’s Small Animal Hospital is one of the busiest of its kind in the UK treating thousands of domestic pets every year and the Veterinary faculty is in the final stages of raising £10million for a new state-of-the-art facility. The hospital, currently being built on the Garscube Estate in Bearsden, will be a pioneering world-class centre for Veterinary medicine. It will be officially launched in summer 2009 and will be a teaching and referral hospital for the 21st century. It will also provide students, practicing vets and staff with unrivalled facilities.

For more information, contact Ray McHugh in the University of Glasgow Media Relations Office on 0141 330 3535 or email r.mchugh@admin.gla.ac.uk

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First published: 1 January 2009