# Changing Animal's Name



## Marsha Cassada (Jan 9, 2007)

I am so glad to hear that Stumpy/Prince will have such a creative home. I am sure he will have a brilliant career ahead of him, perhaps as mascot or ambassador.

I have a question, though, about changing an animal's name. I don't think people should do that. Especially an animal that has had and known his name. Animals that live in herds and never know they have a name is one thing, but an animal that has been used to a name, it seems confusing to change it. I may not like the name my horses came with, but it's easier for me to get used to than for them to get used to a different one.

I am not an animal psychologist. My opinion is only based on my observation. If you don't agree, how long do you think it takes an animal to get used to a new name? Do you not believe that a horse recognizes his own name when you call? I believe mine do.

Marsha


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## tifflunn (Jan 9, 2007)

I don't have an oppioion one way or another- but- the 2 rescue boys I had- one had some very negative things associated with his name over the past- and a simple thing as a name change - which we did not do here( should have thought of that




: though ) made his new life transition much easier- and he learned his new name and it now had pleasant experiences with it- a small thing but in that situation it seemed to help :bgrin -


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## kaykay (Jan 9, 2007)

A horse for sure doesnt care what you call it. So really its us humans who can be offended by certain names. I do agree that some horses do get used to being called by a name. But then I have bought other horses who have no clue what their name is. It just really depends on how they were handled previously. I talk to my own horses alot so they do seem to be able to distinguish which name is which.

for this particular horse his name could be taken as very offensive by many people. He is going to be used as a mascot of sorts for the prostetic company. And hopes are that he will also meet children with artificial limbs so calling him stumpy *in public* would be pretty much out of the question.

Its really is rare to have to change a name on an animal but I think in this case its appropriate. I feel sure if he doesnt respond to his new name his new mini mom can use stumpy at home


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## Warpony (Jan 9, 2007)

Most of my animals come from horrible neglect situations, some from abuse situations that go beyond just neglect. Two of them actually had racially offensive names when I got them. In all of these situations i immediately changed the animals name and had absolutely no problem doing so, whether they were a pony, a dog or a cat.

The reason I change the names of my rescues is because to me there is usually nothing but sorrow, suffering and heartache associated with their old life. My goal is to take them completely out of their old life so that they can be reborn into a new life free of pain, suffering and fear. Part of that rebirth into a new better life is getting a new name. I've never had an animal have the least bit of trouble with it, in fact I have had several who responded to their new name the first time I used it better then they responded to their old name they had been hearing for years.

I've never had it take more then a few hours for a dog to adjust to his new name as long as i put some effort into teaching it to him. Most of my cats answer to anything from their names to swear words to quacking sounds so i don;t think they care what we call them. The horses always all came running no matter which one I called but the one who did seem to recognize her name responded to her new name within the first afternoon. A few days later I was telling someone about her and used her old name (I was explaining why I change names, actually) and she cowered and looked at me with such fear in her eyes, so I immediately called her by her new name and reached out to her and she just leaned into me as if she was relieved that i had used her new name. I never ever used her old name around her after that because it was so clear to me that she associated bad things with it.


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## ChrystalPaths (Jan 9, 2007)

I work with alot of recue horses some here and some in NY. The first thing most horses (and dogs) tell me are their names. KayKay's Mary, Stephie's Faith, several others. I usually tell the person if I get a name but they don't have to use it. A horse associates the name sound with who is using it. Softly say "hey Faith" and she gets soft and approaches, say "HEY FAITH" and she'll lift her head in question. A rose (or horse) by any other name is still so sweet. I find rescues are quick with a name, the change is good for them.


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## Steph_D (Jan 10, 2007)

When I got Faith out of the situation that she was in, I asked the people what they had been calling her. I was determined to NOT call her by that name, so I wanted to make sure what it was. They had named her Sheena, and I wanted to change it. I didn't want her to associate anything here with what had happened there. They even wanted their halter back and I was going to trash it anyway, because I wasn't going to allow her to wear it here. At first we were calling her Chloe, but that changed with Deb sent me a pm and told me that her name was Faith. That named seemed to fit her so well, and she came to it instantly. After we got her here, I felt that she deserved a little bit of what SHE wanted, so something as simple as a name was easy to do for her



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## Warpony (Jan 10, 2007)

Steph_D said:


> When I got Faith out of the situation that she was in, I asked the people what they had been calling her. I was determined to NOT call her by that name, so I wanted to make sure what it was. They had named her Sheena, and I wanted to change it. I didn't want her to associate anything here with what had happened there. They even wanted their halter back and I was going to trash it anyway, because I wasn't going to allow her to wear it here. At first we were calling her Chloe, but that changed with Deb sent me a pm and told me that her name was Faith. That named seemed to fit her so well, and she came to it instantly. After we got her here, I felt that she deserved a little bit of what SHE wanted, so something as simple as a name was easy to do for her
> 
> 
> 
> :


This expresses really well why I change names. Some times i get a name so clear that i know it belongs to them. It seems to have a bigger effect on dogs then on other species but I have seen a huge change for the better in some animals when you change their name, and never ever had one have a problem with it...


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## Jill (Jan 11, 2007)

I personally think it is "fine" to change an animal's name. I have done this with several horses and they do all adjust quickly. Much as I love my horses, I do think if they could chime in they'd repeat that phrase that goes _"call me anything but late for dinner"_.

With dogs, I have changed the name of two. One was named "Chestnut" first and lived his life tied to a tree and full of matted hair (shih-tzu). He is happy to now be known as Webster.

Then the other, also a shih-tzu, was formerly known as "Karla" and is now known as "Whitney". Whitney knew her new name, I swear, within a day! And seems to adore her name. We changed her name because I have a friend named Karla.


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## Marsha Cassada (Jan 11, 2007)

Thanks for all the interesting views and personal experiences. I won't be so hesitant to change names in the future. I guess the animals are more flexible and adaptable than I am. :bgrin

Marsha


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## PaintedPromiseRanch (Jan 16, 2007)

kinda late posting but we also change names, especially with our rescues... we figure a new life deserves a new name. there have been a couple who were not abused and whose names fit them so well we didn't change them. the little red mare ginger for example... we have never had any problem changing a name. in fact i just got a new horse saturday and we have her on a temporary lease to make sure she fits us and our herd... if so, her name will be changing too! it's not really that bad... just not good :bgrin


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## Miniv (Jan 16, 2007)

From my experience........Yes, animals have a name preference. Rescue animals often desire a new name more than others. Interestingly, the animals I've spoken to prefer normal "human" sounding names.....

One way to know what an animal's preferred name is to visit with them and ask them. Then, the first name that jumps into your brain is usually the one they like or think of themselves with. And to know for sure, test the name with them at a later time and observe how they respond to it.

MA


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## lilhorseladie (Jan 16, 2007)

Miniv said:


> From my experience........Yes, animals have a name preference. Rescue animals often desire a new name more than others. Interestingly, the animals I've spoken to prefer normal "human" sounding names.....
> 
> One way to know what an animal's preferred name is to visit with them and ask them. Then, the first name that jumps into your brain is usually the one they like or think of themselves with. And to know for sure, test the name with them at a later time and observe how they respond to it.
> 
> MA


I have been wondering this with my rescue boys. Their names are Pumpkin and Snickers but when I first looked at them immediately they were Peanut and Rocky! They seem to fit those names so much better than food names.



I guess Peanut is a food name, but he is kind of a peanut with his attitude too. Peanut will have a home this spring. He is spoken for, but I'm going to hang on to him a bit. Rocky, I want to start with driving. His four white feet would make him a beautiful driver!


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