Image courtesy of VetStreet

While the year isn’t over yet, we have winners for the most popular names for dogs. According to Kristen Seymour at Vetstreet, Max tops the list for male pups and Bella is the most popular name for female puppies.  This shouldn’t come as a surprise, since both names have been at the top of the list since 2006.  Both names also top the list for felines as well.  For male dogs, the top 5 has been the same for the past 3 years, with Buddy, Charlie, Rocky and Cooper rounding out the top 5.   Female dog names haven’t changed much either as Daisy, Lucy, Molly have been the top 4 since 2011 and Sophie replaces Lola for the 5th most popular name.  If you want to see the complete list, click on the image to the left.

Pop culture has been an influence on baby names, with parents naming their kids from characters from Duck Dynasty, HBO’s Girls and even Breaking Bad.   While that isn’t always the case when naming our pets, Bella shot up to #1 after the release of the first Twilight book in 2005; where Max came from, we’re not sure.