17 Hunting Dog Names for Your Hard-Working Pup
When you're deciding to adopt a dog from the shelter or buy one from the breeder, the breed is important. You want a pup that fits your lifestyle, gets along with your other pets (if you have them), and will enjoy their new home as much as you love them. Hunting dogs include many breeds, such as Labrador retrievers, golden retrievers, beagles, bloodhounds, pointer, terrier, mutts, and more. According to the American Kennel Club, they're broken up by their purpose, which includes: locating quarry, flushing birds or waterfowl, retrieving birds or waterfowl, hunting small game, and hunting large quarry. Hunting dogs are athletic, energetic, hard-working, and intelligent.
Irrespective of the breed, your dog's name should fit its personality. One or two syllable names are best; names with hard consonants work well. Why? Dogs can more easily learn to respond to short sounds making training easier. Long names become confusing and are easier to mispronounce, making training more difficult. If the name sounds too much like another word the dog hears frequently like "sit" or "stay" it may become confused and not respond.
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Hunting Dog Names
Here are a variety of names to call your new pup. If you're struggling with the best option, go through all of these options and write down your favorites to narrow it down. Then, try calling your dog by each one to see which one is perfect for them.
If you want a hunting dog name with a warrior spirit, you can look to inspiration from ancient Rome and Greece. For males, there's Orion, the legendary hunter. Sure, it's got three syllables, but your dog would also be named after a constellation.
Zeus, Caesar, and Brutus make a strong statement for males, as does Xena, a warrior princess, for a female hunting dog name.
Most people won't deem Fluffy a good hunting dog name. Then again, if you like irony, an 80-pound cane Corso or other giant breed named Fluffy (think Hagrid's three-headed dog in Harry Potter) is guaranteed to get a grin.
Radar is a good hunting dog name because it speaks to the dog's keen sense of detection. Orca is highly functional (two syllables, a hard consonant) and ideal for a duck hunting dog. Although it brings to mind the term killer whale, orcas are also highly intelligent and incredibly strategic hunters.
Rosie and Roxy are strong girl hunting dog names with some attitude (think of Rosie the Riveter).
Tank, Beast, Bear, and Boomer are good names for bigger breeds. But they can also fit a Jack Russell terrier, long bred for a strong prey drive for vermin.
Buck is a sure-fire hunting dog name. Buck was the central character in one of the most famous fiction works about a dog: Jack London's The Call of the Wild ($6, Amazon). Buck, a Saint Bernard-Scotch shepherd, had the opposite experience of Old Yeller. He led a life of leisure in California when he was stolen and sold into service as a sled dog in Alaska, where he constantly had to fight other dogs to survive.
Angus and Ozzie pay tribute to a hunting heritage while nodding to heavy metal—Angus Young from AC/DC and, of course, Ozzie Osbourne.
Finding the best hunting dog name for your spunky and alert companion can be a fun family activity. This list of unique dog names is sure to get the creative juices flowing whether you end up with a name that nods to your pup's hunting heritage or a favorite book or movie character.
