[Dailydrool] Name game

[Riche Churchill via Dailydrool]

As a dog magazine editor for nearly 50 years, imagine have seen and 
typed at least a gazillion names; mostly show names, but many call 
names, too. Thusly, as a self-proclaimed expert, can tell you that most 
pet owners are way more imaginative than show owners about call names. 
Most annoyingly, most show-dog call names have no apparent link to the 
show name, and unless you're in the "in" crowd, will have no idea what 
dog they're talking about.

Naming a show dog is complicated;  the "kennel name" can't have been 
used by anyone else and number of letters restricted. It used to be 25, 
but now one can pay to add extra letters and some people go overboard. 
In the olden days, names were much simpler and shorter; usually easy to 
remember and spell. To an editor, the latter is very important (and 
should be to the breeder...) and the former ought to be important to 
all, but no longer seems to be. Excessively long names are the bane of 
any editor's existence. They don't fit most formats, are ripe for 
misspelling, impossible to remember.

The unwritten rule used to be that the name began with the breeder's 
kennel name (i.e., "First Class Xxx"). Sometimes a buyer was allowed to 
start the name with their own kennel name and end with breeder's name 
(i.e., "Yahoo's Whosit of First Class"), but I never understood the 
seller's logic there. Most lists are alphabetical, so keeping your name 
first would be in your favor for advertising and history referencing. 
Sometimes this was done because the new owner owned the sire, but most 
often was simply to get one's own kennel name introduced. or "seen."

Generally, it was considered gauche to use one's actual full name as a 
"kennel name" (such as "Nancy Evans") and only a tiny few did so. Many 
used just their first or last name, however, and that was and is 
considered quite acceptable.

My personal favorites in show-dog naming practices are those who follow 
a "theme" and their dogs' names always keep to a pattern -- movie stars, 
cocktail names, food items, astronomy or royalty, and so forth.

But, back to call names: It does seem to me that Bassets are given 
"people" names more frequently than are other breeds or mutts. Every 
Basset I've ever owned had a people-name, usually part of their show 
name, except for Plum-Ugly. Bless his heart.

Riche (The Bugler)
buglr at blomand.net
P.S. Have noticed many saying they like to see the email addy at end of 
post, but very few are doing it -- even the ones who say they like it! (?)