Sorry, not many posts today, I’ve got family in town and I spent the day looking at dogs. So to keep you entertained, I am putting up a discussion post. And also because I am TERRIBLE at naming things.
This is the dog I met today and applied for, a very doggy looking dog. With a sad life, rescued from a high kill shelter in another state, with scars and marks all over, and terrified of other dogs. And then no one wanted to adopt her because I guess she isn’t cute and charming enough for people.
Her foster name is “Petal”, which I think is a terrible dog name! Dogs are supposed to have strong names. But then of course my mind goes blank thinking about a better name.
I saw the dog with my sister and brother-in-law and we talked all the way home, and here is the list of names we came up with:
Bahubali/BB for short
(If you pictured this with a dog, is this the dog you would picture playing Prabhas?)
Bagel (because we were going to get bagels and went to look at dogs instead)
(And then I could feed her doggie bagels!)
Superdawg (because it is the name of our favorite hot dog place)
Poppie (for my Grandfather who loved dogs and we called “Poppy”)
(I could tell other people it was for the flower, because I feel naming a dog after my grandfather would make people think I either don’t respect Poppy-the-person enough or love Poppie-the-dog too much)
Kattapa/i (much discussion, it is a great dog name, but it is also so SAD. And a boy’s name, thus thinking putting the feminine “i” ending might help)
(Katappa! But could I ever really trust her?)
Dost (obvious reasons)
Ozma (what I would name my dog in a perfect world! And also in this perfect world, everyone else would know about the Oz books and recognize the name)
(Ozma!)
Asha (not for the singer, but for the general “hope” concept, which seems very dog-y)
Rani (like the classic dog name “Queenie”, but sounds nicer)
(Her real name could be Lakshmibai for long, and I could just call her Rani)
Helen (for Helen. Who also had a hard beginning and no one really wanted to take her home, but then she found a wonderful family)
Don’t limit yourself to just these names! Or this dog, I am not trying to get my hopes up about her working out. Any name in the world is open and available! Give me options.
dontcallitbollywood 
Wait wait! A late nomination for “Duchess”!
LikeLike
I don’t know, is she regal enough?
LikeLike
From all the names mentioned here, I would like Asha for her…She has a sad look in her eyes and with you there would be hope for a better life as she had before. It’s also a name that sounds good if you utter it in different timbre, it would fit calling her Asha in a caressing way but also if you have to shout it to her…
LikeLike
And Asha is climbing to the top of the list!
LikeLike
I vote Bahubali/BB that be so cool!!
LikeLike
I think she is too strongly built for Poppi…Ozma is nice, too (and the wonderful world of OZ)
LikeLike
Oups! wrong place! Here, I wanted to write that BB gives me more the association of Brigitte Bardot than Bahubali 🙂
LikeLike
She’s a girl and you wanted a strong name so…. Devasena?!?
LikeLike
But so hard to say! Or at least, hard to shout when she is running too far away.
LikeLike
I like Poppie and Asha. Ozma is the coolest but it doesn’t really roll off the tongue for me. Mitra or Mitta is nice–also means friend but has 2 syllables–better for doggie to hear. A wonderful woman I met in India’s name is Sanghamitra, friend of the community. Also Buddha’s daughter’s name.
LikeLike
Mitra might be too hard for me. I have problems with my rs sometimes. But Poppie and Asha are both strong choices.
LikeLike
I like people names for dogs, so my vote would be Helen, but you’d have to meet her and make sure she’s a Helen. Second choice is Rani, with Lakshmibai Rani for when you need to tell her to get off the couch.
LikeLike
I have met her now and I think, out of all of these names, she might be most like a Bagel. But I agree that people names are good, so I need a people name that has the same feel as “Bagel”
LikeLike
What about Dayra (it is a Hindi word for circle but has interesting meanings when you google “meaning of Dayra”)?
LikeLike
I actually prefer the name “Petal” to all your choices, certainly much more than Bagel! Bagel makes me think you want to eat her. Toast her and eat her. Ugh! Not a good image. Next would be Asha. But won’t she be confused if you change her name? Would it be another trauma on top of all her earlier ones?
LikeLike
I asked about that, the fosters said it is no big deal to change the name, she can adjust. She was “Pistol” for her first few months, and then they changed it to “Petal”, so I can just change it again. And I just really don’t like Petal!
But Asha, Asha I might be able to live with.
On Sat, Apr 7, 2018 at 8:10 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:
>
LikeLike
Well,Asha at least has a good meaning that is appropriate to both her and your situation.
LikeLike
I love this dog!
Baahubali would be right because she has “strong arms” but I know it as a name of the man so don’t like it for girl.
I like the idea of long fancy name like Lakshmibai, but I agree with other comments that maybe Asha will be better for this dog. Oh, what do you think about Ashajyoti or Ashakiran (ray of hope) or Ashavari?
LikeLike
Maybe! of course, it all comes down to IF I get this dog, what kind of a name she feels like.
LikeLike
I like Poppie, such a cute name! Or maybe Hazel? Is she hazel colored?
LikeLike
Oh! I really like Hazel!
LikeLike
Narcissistic suggestion from me: Name her Ashi.. which sounds like Asha but with an ee in the end. Ashi is my nickname. hehehe.. It could be an interesting conversation piece too. Like people ask what does that name mean and you can say well that’s the name of this insane chick that follows my blog (which leads to questions and answers about the blog) or you can say well the dog is “A She” or you can say it is a bhutanese royal title that loosely translates into “lady princess”!!
Of course my mom used to tell me that Ashi means someone who eats a lot!
LikeLike
Heck, I could just name the dog “Dontcallitbollywood”!
On Sun, Apr 8, 2018 at 11:01 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:
>
LikeLike
THAT would be good advertising!!! 😂
LikeLike
Heck, just shave it onto the dog’s side.
On Mon, Apr 9, 2018 at 9:15 AM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:
>
LikeLike
1. Phoolan Devi
2. Jhansi ki Rani
3. Roop Kaur (just a name I happen to love)
4. Jalebi
5. Kachori
All names I’d picked out for my own dog. Congatulations!
LikeLike
I was thinking Jalebi! But this dog is very fat and needs to lose weight, and that seemed mean. On the other hand, I really love Jalebis.
On Mon, Apr 9, 2018 at 2:28 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:
>
LikeLike
How is that mean?! Im fat and need to lose weight. If my parents called me cupcake, I wouldn’t think they were being mean.
LikeLike
PS: My (rescue) dog has had two previous names, too. And she LOVES her new name. I second what the fosters told you.
LikeLike
PS2: I tried calling her by those earlier names the other day, just out of curiosity. Didn’t even respond or show the slightest signs of recognition.
LikeLike
Oh good! Everyone I know who has a rescue dog has changed the name, but it seems so odd somehow. Nice to know it’s no big deal.
On Mon, Apr 9, 2018 at 2:57 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:
>
LikeLike
Yeah, but she already has such low self-esteem. Just sits in a corner at adoption events and tries to make herself look small. Which is why she is the perfect dog for me (knock on wood fingers crossed), because I can be all gentle and encouraging and supportive like nobodies business.
On Mon, Apr 9, 2018 at 2:55 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:
>
LikeLike
Haha she doesn’t know what jalebi means! Also Indian people have terms of endearment based on food not because we think that person EATS that thing a lot, but because we find them as sweet or as delicious or as enjoyable. I call my dog all sorts of mithai names.
LikeLike
It would allow me to dance with her to this song:
On Mon, Apr 9, 2018 at 3:10 PM, dontcallitbollywood wrote:
>
LikeLiked by 1 person