Top pet names revealed

Man's best friend - Little Mo? Billy?

Pet owners in Scotland typically name their cats Jasper and their dogs Sam, according to a survey of most popular animal names.

But popular culture in the shape of The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter has thrown up some more unusual pet names like Gandalf, Hobbit, Harry, Hedwig and Voldemort.

PET NAME FAVOURITES

Cats top 10

1. Jasper

2. Tigger

3. Charlie

4. Lucky

5. Gizmo

6. Henry

7. Oscar

8. Smudge

9. Honey

10. Dylan

Dogs top 10

1. Sam

2. Coco

3. Jack

4. Ben

5. Tansy

6. Max

7. Chloe

8. Harry

9. Gizmo

10. Olly

Some Scottish dogs have found themselves named after Eastenders characters like Little Mo and Billy or TV chefs such as Nigella, Delia and Oliver.

The top 10 names for dogs include Jack at number three and Chloe at seven.

Coincidentally, they were also the most popular boy and girl names for babies born in Scotland in 2002.

Top names for boys and girls
Click here

Jasper toppled Tigger to number two from the previous year's top cat spot while Sam retained its doggie popularity, with Coco coming in second.

The survey - the second of its kind - was sponsored by the animal pharmaceutical firm Merial and conducted via vet surgeries up and down the UK with about 10,000 cat and dog names being logged.

Celebrity names

UK-wide the most popular dog's name was Charlie and the most popular cat's name was Tigger.

Rachel Smithson, Merial's veterinary technical manager, said: "Popular culture continues to have a major influence on what we name our pets, which is why we are seeing a trend towards animals being named after film stars and TV characters."

Following a survey of US pet owners, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) found that the top five favourite pet names for last year were Max, Sam, Lady, Bear and Smokey.