Unlucky Cat Names

Battersea Dogs and Cats Home tell us that cats with the names: Charlie, Princess and Tigger a more likely to be at their rescue re-homing facility than cats with other names. These are some of the more common cat names at the rescue facility. As for dogs, the same could be said for the names: Buster, Coco and Max.

These are very normal and quite common names for cats and dogs. Head of Operations at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, Carly Whyborn, says that certain names for pets are unlucky. She thinks it’s a matter of luck that cats and dogs with certain names find themselves being relinquished or abandoned, ending up in rescue centres or she means that they don’t get adopted partly because of their name.

I don’t think it’s purely about luck that cats with these names end up at Battersea. I think it is somewhat predictable. Firstly, these are in general the most common cat names. If there are more cats with these names then there will be more cats at Battersea with these names. That is the first point.

Secondly, you just have ask yourself what sort of people are most likely to give their cats the names mentioned?

These are typical rather unimaginative names. This tends to indicate that the names were chosen without a lot of thought or imagination. It could be argued that they are names that are chosen slightly carelessly which reinforces the possibility that the people who are giving these names to their cats and dogs are themselves careless (this is not cut and dried, it is just a possible trend).

In addition people chose a name that suits their own personality and if a person has low self-esteem they may think of themselves as boring and extend that thought to their companion animal giving a less adventurous name as a result. These sorts of people may end up giving up their cat more often than others.

There is another aspect to this which may play a minor role. If a name is commonplace, potential adopters, looking for an exotic or interesting companion animal, may be put off because the name itself is mundane. This is supported by Louise (see below).

Here is the full list of most common cat names at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home for 2011.

 
Some more exotic names at Battersea for cats were: Miss Piggy, Batman, Big Dave and Mr Bean.

Last year (presumed to mean: 2013) 8,904 cats and dogs were cared for at Battersea of which 40% were relinquished by their owners. These companion animals had names.

Louise Taylor, a lost and found assistant, believes that giving your cat a good name can help the cat to stand out at a rehoming cattery. Is that something you’d have in mind when naming your cat?

It wouldn’t cross my mind because I would never relinquish my cat but…perhaps if I fell seriously ill and was unable to care for my cat then it is possible that he would end up at a cat rescue center.

So picking a lucky cat name might be something that an older person should keep in mind when adopting a cat.

What are the lucky names? Based upon this information it will be a name that is different and a bit exotic. Click this link for Google search results on PoC for cat names. As for black cats there would seem to be a special need to give a good name. Here are some examples.

Note: my cat is named Charlie. My late mother named him. She changed his name after adopting him from an RSPCA center in Hertfordshire.

Is this significant? Not really because this is not a black and white situation. Some great cat guardians will chose common names.