Is it OK to change your pet's name?

[Guineveretoo]

I know someone who had a dog called Spliff for many years. For reasons which are not terribly interesting, the dog's owner left the dog with his parents who decided to change its name to Swift...

 

[trashpony]

The Naming Of Cats

 

[moonsi til]

My downstairs neighbour has a black cat called Pye-Wacket who she calls in for dinner each day at 4pm. Shouting 'pye..pye'. Cat also got called in earlier cos (I think) the wind was blowing in a windy manner.

 

[hatz]

When I got my cat he was 5 and had been a stray, though clearly had been someones pet. I have no idea what his name was then. The rescue centre named him Alfred. We called him Dickens for a few days, then decided on Wedgwood. However, he got called all sorts of things, like Hedgerow, Wilson, Raikko, and Shit'n'piss (the last when he'd made a mess in the bathroom).

He seemed fine with all of it. Maybe depends on the temperament of your cat, but I guess seeing as all rescue cats get new names then it should be okay??

 

[Sweaty Betty]

Its as wrong as slapping your chops at the dinner table!!!

 

[RubyToogood]

I used to have a dog whose name I changed, but it never really sat right.

I think it's perfectly acceptable to have a nickname for your cat, and for that to end up being the name that's generally used.

 

[moose]

Our Cedric used to be called Niamh by his previous-owners-but-one, because they thought he was a girl. He never, ever answered to it.
His last owners, noticing this, changed it to Sir Cedric Hardwicke. We abbreviated it to Cedric when we got him, and he answers to it happily.

 

[Griff]

When we got Mr.Sax from friends, his name was just Sax. He didn't mind, in fact I think he prefers it.

Also Ickle was called Ellie when we first got her from the rescue centre. She just didn't seem like an Ellie in the slightest.

 

[The Boy]

dunno about cats but my/my missus' dog has several names. He came from a dog rescue so not sure if he was originally called whisky but thats his name now. He also gets called w, , dubs, whis, whiskypoo, whiskypold, viskypoo, veeeskypold, pold, wee man and shitbag (he only responds to the last one when I say it for some reason ).

admittedly they are mostly derived from his original name but if he was never called whisky again I'm sure he wouldn't notice.

 

[Epona]

My cat only responds to 3 words*, and one of them is his name - so I wouldn't change his. Depends on whether yours looks up when you call her name (obviously as she's a cat she'll go straight back to whatever she was doing but I still think my point is valid) - if she doesn't then change it.

* The other 2 words are 'dinner' and 'cuddles'. I have tried to make him respond to the word 'No' but he just looks at me as if I'm daft. He does know what it means though!