Girl Dog Names: 200 Ideas + Naming Tips

So whether you’re looking for something creative & unique, or just cute & meaningful, here are 200 girl dog names along with tips to keep in mind when naming your fur baby. Don’t worry, we’ve also got ideas for cat names too!

And yes, we’ll be the first to admit our current dog, Penny, isn’t the most creative dog name… but we’ll share the sweet way she got that name at the end of this post! And I think her full name (Penny Parmesan Petersik) is pretty funny. So sometimes it’s a combo move that can take a very common pet name to the next level. Or even just a fun nickname.

How To Name Your Female Dog

While it’s hard to go wrong naming your pet, there are some pitfalls to avoid and some suggestions for narrowing your selection.

• Keep it short: One or two-syllable names are easiest for dogs to understand and respond to (and easier for us pet parents to call out). If your heart is set on a longer name (ex: Sarah Jessica Barker), just be ready with a shorter nickname.
• Don’t create “Command Confusion”: Don’t pick names that rhyme with common obedience commands like sit, stay, down, heel, potty, etc. This could make training confusing and less successful.
• Avoid something similar to existing household names: Try to avoid choosing a name that rhymes or sounds like another pet (or human!) name that already exists in your home. You want to make it easy for your dog to know when she is being called. We failed BIG TIME on this one (but have landed on nicknames for our cat and dog that do not rhyme, so… crisis averted).
• Have fun with it: Naming your pet is a great opportunity to be creative, personal, and even a little bit cheeky. And avoiding common names like Bella, Luna, and Maya will minimize confusion at dog parks, vet offices, canine birthday parties, etc.
• Think beyond the obvious: There are a lot of black dogs named Shadow and brown dogs named Coco. So if you’re taking inspiration from your new dog’s coloring, it can be fun to stretch yourself to think of less common color references that might end up being more unique.
• Test it out: Don’t be afraid to try out a name for a few days to see how you, your pet, and your family respond to it.
• Don’t overcomplicate it: All that said, don’t stress if your favorite pet name breaks all of these rules. As long as you like a name and can comfortably use it for years to come, go for it.

Where To Find Dog Name Inspiration

Don’t know where to start picking a dog name? Sometimes it helps to pick a category or style of name to help refine your search. Here are some popular starting points:

• Human Names: Camille, Evelyn, Sutton
• Celebrity Names: Anna Wintour, Betty White, Rihanna
• Fictional Character Names: Carrie Bradshaw, Effie Trinket, Smurfette
• Food Names: Cashew, Gouda, Pinto
• Object Names: Choptick, Beanie, Gadget
• Nature Names: Blossom, Ivy, Twiggy
• Animal Names: Gerbil, Kangaroo, Ladybug
• Place Names: Tokyo, Georgia, Nola
• Physical Feature Names: Toast (brown dog), Polka (spotted dog), Thimble (small dog)

25 Most Popular Female Dog Names

This list should help anyone looking for a tried-and-true name. Or, if you’re looking for a unique name, here are some of the most popular girl dog names to avoid if you don’t want to bump into three others at the vet or the dog park:

1. Luna
2. Bella
3. Daisy
4. Maggie
5. Lucy
6. Bailey
7. Sadie
8. Ellie
9. Lilly
10. Zoe
11. Gracie
12. Willow
13. Millie
14. Poppy
15. Rosie
16. Sophie
17. Pepper
18. Lola
19. Chloe
20. Molly
21. Ruby
22. Nova
23. Winnie
24. Penny
25. Piper

This list is cross-referenced from the American Kennel Club, Rover.com, DogWatch, and Chewy. You can visit those links for more.

25 Food Names for Female Dogs

We will never not love a food name for a pet (hence our first dog: Burger). They can be so full of personality and, let’s be honest, most aren’t names you can give a child. It’s just a good time to get to name something after a favorite dish, ingredient, or sweet treat.

1. Arugula
2. Bagel
3. Butternut Squash (nickname: Butter)
4. Cashew
5. Cardamom
6. Cheesecake (nickname: Cece)
7. Dr. Pepper (alt: Mrs. Pibb)
8. Edamame (nickname: Edie)
9. Gouda
10. Ginger
11. Guava
12. Honey
13. Key Lime (nickname: Kiki)
14. Macadamia (nickname: Mac or Mia)
15. Mushroom
16. Nutella
17. Olive
18. Okra
19. Papaya
20. Peach
21. Pepperoni (nickname: Pepper)
22. Pinto
23. Rosemary
24. Sardine
25. Zuchinni

25 Celebrity Names for Girl Dogs

Naming your pooch after a celebrity is an easy way to add extra quirk and meaning to any human dog name. Just make sure you’re comfortable using the first or last name alone for everyday use (like Diane for Diane Keaton). These are especially fun when you hear the vet call out your puppy’s full name in the waiting room:

1. Alicia Silverstone
2. Anna Wintour
3. Awkwafina
4. Betty White
5. Beyonce
6. Celine Dion
7. Cher
8. Lady Gaga
9. Frida Kahlo
10. Jennifer Aniston
11. Julia Child
12. Lucy Liu
13. Margot Robbie
14. Mariah Carey
15. Meryl Streep
16. Missy Elliot
17. Mindy Kaling
18. Oprah Winfrey
19. Pamela Anderson
20. Paris Hilton
21. Reese Witherspoon
22. Rihanna
23. Sarah Jessica Parker (alt: Sarah Jessica Barker)
24. Simone Biles
25. Venus Williams

25 Character Names for Girl Dogs

Like celebrity names, naming your dog after a fictional character can be a creative alternative to a generic human name. It’s also a way to showcase your love of a particular movie, TV show, book, or other piece of pop culture. Just be careful when plucking something from popular or “trending” media, which can lead to overuse (think Elsa, Hermione, and Zelda – all of which are very popular on dog name lists).

1. Blanche (Golden Girls)
2. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
3. Carrie Bradshaw (Sex & The City)
4. Clarice Starling (Silence of the Lambs)
5. Detective Olivia Benson (Law & Order: SVU)
6. Daenerys Targaryen (Game of Thrones)
7. Dana Scully (The X-Files)
8. Dorothy Gale (Wizard of Oz)
9. Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman
10. Effie Trinket (Hunger Games)
11. Elle Woods, Attorney (Legally Blonde)
12. Jean Grey (X-Men)
13. Lara Croft Tomb Raider
14. Leslie Knope (Parks & Recreation)
15. Lorelai Gilmore (Gilmore Girls)
16. Liz Lemon (30 Rock)
17. Monica Gellar (Friends)
18. Olivia Pope (Scandal)
19. Peggy Olson (Mad Men)
20. Phoebe Buffay (Friends)
21. Scarlett O’Hara (Gone With The Wind)
22. Smurfette (The Smurfs)
23. Vanellope von Schweetz (Wreck-It Ralph)
24. Veronica Mars
25. Xena Warrior Princess

25 Human Names for Female Dogs

Many popular girl dog names double as baby names (Stella, Ruby, Molly). You can consider something that doesn’t end in -a or -y sounds for a more unique dog name (Janet, Alexis, Edith). Here are some of our favorite, less common ideas – including some androgynous names that can work for a boy or a girl dog:

1. Agnes
2. Alexis
3. Beatrice (Bea)
4. Bernadette
5. Betsy
6. Brenda
7. Camille
8. Celeste
9. Charlie
10. Dorothy (Dot)
11. Doris
12. Edith
13. Elizabeth (Liz, Beth, or Libby)
14. Esther
15. Evelyn
16. Frankie
17. Gladys
18. Jane
19. Janet
20. Joey
21. Karen
22. Margot
23. Quinn
24. Rose
25. Sutton

25 Object Names for Female Dogs

Like food names, inanimate objects can also become cute quirky names for a pet. You can even choose one that nods to a physical feature, like color or size (a tiny Yorkie named Crumb). So take a look around your house, kitchen, or closet for ideas!

1. Beanie
2. Blanket
3. Button
4. Chestnut
5. Chopstick
6. Crumb
7. Flip Flop
8. Gadget
9. Lasso
10. Lazy Susan
11. Locket
12. Molecule (nickname: Molly)
13. Novella
14. Pinch Pot
15. Pocket
16. Ribbon
17. Scrabble
18. Slippers
19. Tassel
20. Terracotta
21. Thimble
22. Teaspoon
23. Velvet
24. Whisk
25. Wi-Fi

25 Nature Names for Girl Dogs

The natural environment is a rich resource for girl names, even beyond the popular flower and tree names. This is a great category for naming people too, so you can find more options in baby naming books too.

1. Blossom
2. Blaze
3. Briar
4. Canyon
5. Delta
6. Feather
7. Fern
8. Ginkgo
9. Glade
10. Glimmer
11. Indigo
12. Iris
13. Ivy
14. Lagoon
15. Laurel
16. Meadow
17. Opal
18. Pearl
19. Petal
20. Puddle
21. River
22. Rose
23. Sprout
24. Tulip
25. Twiggy

25 Animal Names for Female Dogs

Another fun approach is naming your puppy after a different creature entirely. Like object names, you can use them as cute (or cheeky) references to your dog’s coloring, size, or personality (like a big dog named Hummingbird).

1. Bunny
2. Butterfly
3. Capybara
4. Dove
5. Firefly
6. Gecko
7. Gerbil
8. Grasshopper
9. Hamster
10. Honeybee
11. Hummingbird
12. Junebug
13. Kangaroo (nickname: Roo)
14. Koala
15. Ladybug
16. Mink
17. Mouse
18. Otter
19. Panda
20. Piglet
21. Pika
22. Puma
23. Sparrow
24. Swan
25. Tortoise

How We Named Our Current Dog

Our dog is named Penny. We wish it were less overused, but our daughter and our son picked it out (since we got Burger before they were born, it seemed fair to let them have the naming reins for this go around). We all thought an object/food/plant name (not a human name) would be fun for her, because we loved Burger’s name so much. Both of our kids shouted out random object names for an entire evening as we went to Petsmart to get supplies and then to Chipotle to grab dinner on the go. And it was there that our daughter saw a penny on the ground. We all felt so lucky to have found this sweet dog, that the idea of her being our own “lucky penny” had legs. To top it off, she has two distinct copper-colored dots on her head, which actually resemble pennies. Our son was just as into the name as our daughter, so it became official. And that’s how, despite the popularity of the name Penny, we decided it was the perfect name for her! Knowing that it was being paired with Petersik (and squeezing in a funny middle name: Parmesan) made it feel more fun.

More Naming Resources

Believe it or not, I don’t just want to name your pets, I also want to name your baby. Be sure to check out these posts where I’ve shared with some of my favorite names: