Choosing the perfect name for your cockapoo is a huge amount of fun, but there are some important things you need to know before deciding on the perfect cockapoo name. You need a name that is easy to shout out across the park, and one that doesn’t make you want to cringe when the vet calls it out across the waiting room! Above all, you need to choose a name that your cockapoo will respond to and recognise.
Cockapoo names, or any dog name really, are vital to establishing a great relationship between pet and owner. Choosing the right name is the first step to training your canine companion the right way.
Search any dog owners’ forum for long enough and you’ll come across posts that ask questions like: “why won’t my dog come when she’s called?” And, “my dog won’t listen to me!”
More often than not, one of the root causes of this type of behaviour is a poorly named dog.
In fact, a cockapoo’s name is the key to having them understand that they might be given a task or request. You’ll say “Izzy” and see their ears prick up, and then “Sit,” “Stay” or (my favourite) “Bang!” Try saying these words without the name, and you’re success rate is going to be much lower.
These 6 tips will help you figure out how to go about choosing the right name for your dog. Once you’re done reading, why not check out our list of 29 Adorable Girl, Boy and Unisex Cockapoo Names.
#6 Make sure your cockapoo name is unique
Although we might sometimes not want to believe it, dogs of all breeds struggle to understand human speech. They live with us and listen to our conversations, but they need the right cues to understand when we are speaking to them.
These cues might come in the form of gestures and body language, or they might come from words that they have been trained to recognise as a signal that we want something from them.
With dog names, the key is to have a name that they can immediately pick out from the rest of human speech – a bit like saying “Ok Google” “Hey Siri” or “Alex.”
It’s no good choosing a name like “Bob” as, over time, your pup will get tired of responding to every word it hears from you that sounds a little bit like “Bob” (e.g. how was your job today? Do you want anything from the shop? etc.)
So choose a dog name that sounds different from day to day words in your household.
Instead, consider:
- Names that sound significantly different from friends and family.
- Names or words that won’t often be said on the TV (I.e. don’t call your dog Logan if you’re a massive X-Men Fan!)
- Names that are distinct from common dog training and command terms (Kayla / stay etc.)
Now, an easy way to get around this is by focusing on dog names that have more than one syllable…
#5 How long should a dog’s name be? Answer: Two Syllables
Syllables are perhaps the most important factor to think about when naming a dog.
Put simply, a syllable is a sound you make when you say a word, and, they can be hard or soft:
- Pug has one syllable. It is a “hard” syllable because you put oomph into it when you say it out loud.
- Doodle has two. The first syllable is soft, the second is hard.
- Cockapoo has three. Hard, soft, hard.
Why is this important?
Because if you have a name that is too long in terms of the number of syllables, then your dog will find it harder to learn. And, if the name is too short, it can easily be confused with other words (Jack / Pack, Sack, Hat, etc.)
Also, hard syllables help to cut through other household and outdoor sounds,
So how long should my dog’s name be?
Answer: Two syllables.
This is because it gives enough variety in the sounds that your dog will quickly pick it out from other noises humans make.
Also, it means that your name won’t be too long for your pooch to get confused.
How do you use hard syllables?
Generally, you should choose a dog name that starts with a hard syllable. Or, has at least one hard syllable in it. This will help the name to be heard separately from other sounds.
For example:
- Kikie is great for dog name recognition because it has two hard syllables.
- Poppy is also good because it starts with a hard syllable.
- Barky is ok because it has a hard syllable at the end
- Arthur is not so great because it has two soft syllables
#4 Avoid Embarrassment
Ever had to reveal to your new boss that your dog’s name is actually the same as theirs?
Or heard a large, heavy set man reluctantly shout “Sweetums!” across the park?
If not, make sure that you don’t end up in these positions by choosing cockapoo names that won’t mean you’ll want the ground to swallow you up when you’re in public.
And, by public, really think about that:
When out walking, you’ll meet other dog walkers who will almost always ask “What’s this one’s name then?”
At the vets, your pooch’s name will be bellowed out across the waiting room.
And, when you first get your puppy, everyone you talk to will want to find out what you’ve called it.
Put simply, dogs are like a second limb. And you probably want to avoid embarrassment!
To avoid this, we recommend two simple rules:
- Avoid common human names
- Avoid names that sound like you’re speaking affectionately to your husband or wife!
#3 Try not to change your cockapoo’s name
If you take anything away from this guide to choosing the perfect cockapoo name, it is this one!
In fact it is so important, we’ll keep this short so you pay attention:
Don’t change your dog’s name once you’ve been using it for a week or more!
Not only will the change in name confuse your dog and set back them learning their name, but it will also mean that it will teach your dog a really bad habit…
Changing your dog’s name will teach them that you will train them to do something (recognise their name) and then never come back to it.
Ultimately, this will mean that they will get a cue from you that you are not consistent in your training. They may then decide that the next thing you teach them (their new name) is not that important.
This means that you’ll have to double down and really work to get them back-on-track with their training – all in all, a thing to be avoided!
Now, please don’t think that changing your dog’s name is literally THE END OF THE WORLD! It can be done, and there are really good reasons for doing it (maybe you’ve got a rescue dog etc.)
But, as a general rule, it is best to choose a name and stick with it. Consistency is the key to training, after all.
#2 Make sure everyone agrees about the name
This is also super important (hence it being on the list!). And by everyone, we mean everyone in your family. You’re all the owner after all!
If you’ve got kids, a great way to reach a happy dog naming agreement is to make a shortlist with your partner of ten or so names. Then, once you’re both happy with your shortlist, give it to the kids to vote on.
You could even use a best, good, ok voting system to find the perfect compromise.
Making sure that everyone has “agreed” to the name stops is a good way to stop some family members from adopting their own nicknames for the dog.
This is something that you really want to avoid – you don’t want your new pup “Toffee” to suddenly have to learn to respond to “Tof” and “Fee” as well!
#1 Finding inspiration for your dog’s name
If you’ve reached the end of this guide, you’ll now be thinking: what should I call my cockapoo?
The important thing to remember is this: whatever you like!
Sure, the rules above are important, and hopefully have given you a complete guide to naming your cockapoo puppy. But, really, this is all down to you!
So, it is now all about finding inspiration. Where do you start? Well, a few things that we did was think about:
- Songs and bands that we loved
- Famous cartoon characters
- Thinking about super old-fashioned or unusual names
That’s how we settled for the name Ziggy (can you guess what our favourite song is!?)
If you’re stuck, why not check out: 29 Adorable Cockapoo Names (Girls, Boys, and Unisex!)
We’ve also got a really handy new puppy checklist, which details all of the items you’ll need to get for your new puppy!
