Naming a dog is a big deal. Once you've named your new furry friend, the attachment starts to set in and you'll find yourself saying "Fido" or "Bella" more times than you can fathom. It stands to reason that you should give your dog a good, solid name, something that easily rolls off the tongue.
Names like Bella (868 dogs), Buddy (706), Max (654), and Molly (550) all made the top 10 list of most popular dog names in Cuyahoga County, in that order. The 2016 data comes from the Cuyahoga County Animal Shelter, which compiles a list of all dog licenses registered each year.
Ohio law states that every dog three months and older is required to be registered and licensed by its owner. A one-year license fee is $20, a three-year license fee is $60, and, alternatively, if you never want to deal with the process of registering your best friend again, you can pay a flat fee of $200 for a permanent license.
The latter seems like a good idea if you want to give your dog a unique and apparently random name, like Walnut Wuttinansantikul or Perko's Mason Down By The Brookside, both registered to creative owners here in Cuyahoga County. Or maybe you named your dog something awesome like Van Gogh
Other delightful one-off names on the list include WILL.I.AM, The Duke of York Twp., Sylvia Plath Ford and Thunder Storm Jordan to name a few.
Two Cuyahoga County residents named their dogs after our 22nd president, Grover Cleveland. Another two named their pups Lady Godiva, a possible reference to the Velvet Underground song or perchance named after the countess who rode through the streets of Coventry, England, in protest of taxation.
One person named their dog after porn star Lexie Belle. Another person named their pooch Responsibility, which definitely sums up what it's like to own a pet. On the other hand, someone named their best friend Zoloft, which should serve as a reminder that dogs are supposed to make you happy and not depressed.
The Top 10 registered dog names for 2016 were:
1. Bella - 868
2. Buddy - 706
3. Max - 654
4. Molly - 550
5. Bailey - 550
6. Daisy - 535
7. Lucy - 517
8. Charlie - 495
9. Maggie - 452
10. Sadie - 432
