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Anyone ever rescue a dog and change their name? We've been talking about getting a puppy (DH and I, plus talking to our 3 girls about it), but now after some research, rescuing a young dog seems like a much better idea. But the girls are now set on a name for Earl's new "girlfriend" (thinking a female would be a better fit). I'm sure it depends on the dog, but has anyone done it? Or attempted and failed? Tips?
Location: Montreal -> CT -> MA -> Montreal -> Ottawa
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When we got Artie, he was almost four years old... and was Niko. (Before that, he was "Lucky" -- but he wasn't; he was in a shelter as an abused puppy.)
Anyway, the woman who rescued him named him Niko. I don't know how easy that change was, but it obviously worked. When she needed to rehome him and I adopted him, my husband hated the name Niko.
Although I now know that, to start, you should start saying [old name][new name] together (NikoArtie), and then drop the old name, I didn't know that at the time. We just started calling him Artie, right off the bat. He understood, maybe because he was the only one who was spoken to in *that* tone of voice (babyish ).
And, honestly, I have a dozen or more other names for Artie (like Babykins), that sound nothing like his name -- and he responds to all of them. I really believe that it's tone of voice, more than anything, in the beginning at least, and then they know their (new) name in any tone.
My Jack was 3 when I adopted him and he had a name that didn't fit him. It was such a stereotypical Siberian Husky name and he is not a stereotypical fellow. I asked him if he minded being called Jack from now on and he smiled. I think he liked his new name better, too. Several family and friends came over to meet him and called him Jack right from the start. He never once seemed confused. He sometimes goes by Captain Jack, Big Jack, Jackalope or Smilin' Jack. I think that as long as they can always associate their new name with kindness and love, and know that it's theirs, they'll be happy with it.
My dog has so many pet-names that she probably has no idea what her actual name is. I call her something different almost everytime I call her, but she always knows when I'm calling her, and only some of the names ryme with the original. It's all in the tone of your voice. I think you could easily change a dog's name, especially a young one.
My recently adopted little guy was named Brutus. He weighed a whopping 4#'s, I changed his name to Rhett Butler, he knew his name in a few days! No problem, name your new baby what you want, they respond to love and warm words!
We've changed the names of 3 of the dogs we've adopted, and they all learned their new ones by the end of the day. I've even heard it said it's better to change the name because it represents a new beginning.
We have no idea what Darcy's real name was. Her name at the last shelter was Dorie but she had been in several. However, as soon as we walked out of the shelter, I called her Darcy and she responded. I think it has a lot to do with the tone of your voice (I am no expert); but if your voice sounds kind and you are looking at your new pet, I think they get the idea.
My dog as named Shilo when I adopted her at 10 months old. She had been in foster care and had been in the dog pound too. Who knows what her first name was but I changed her name and she had no problem knowing when I was calling her.
And like many pet owners, she rarely gets called by the name I named her. She has oodles of nicknames and most of the time, she'll respond to any noise that sounds like someone might be talking to her.
She's blind now so just the sound of any voice helps her be aware of who's around so she doesn't think she's home alone.
my bailey was 4 months old and named patches in the shelter where i adopted her....
my dave was 10 months old and named spike in the shelter where i adopted him.... how he wound up with THAT name is something i will NEVER figure out....
roxie was about 10 months to 1 year ... i have no idea what her previous name was because she was running loose in my neighborhood....
all of them learned their new names VERY quickly......
Feeding + using the new name = instant association
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