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Ernie Clement leads the pack in inspiring this year's roster of trending pet names

Nearly half of this year’s top trending dog names in Canada were inspired by sports

Published Oct 25, 2026  •  2 minute read

Ernie Clement #22 of the Toronto Blue Jays, right, celebrates with George Springer #4 after scoring the go-ahead run in the eighth inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on May 29, 2026 in Baltimore, Maryland. Photo by Jamie Sabau /Getty Images

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Rover released its annual report on top pet names and while there are the usual suspects, the list also boasts some surprisingly creative choices.

The pet-sitting platform is clearly in the know and after analyzing data submitted by its users between August and October this year, they determined that pop culture played a huge part of naming a pet.

The most popular dog names are Leo and Luna, which also happened to be the most popular for female felines. Milo, however, was most popular for males.

However, when it comes to trending names, popular musicians, actors and characters served as inspiration, as did delicious foods and favourite athletes.

Nearly half of this year’s top trending dog names in Canada were inspired by sports, including Ernie (Toronto Blue Jays second baseman and MLB all star Ernie Clement) in the No. 1 spot, Lacey (Canadian soccer player Lacey Kindel) taking fifth place, Kane (Vancouver Canucks winger Evander Kane and, yes, English soccer star Harry Kane) in sixth and Casey in seventh (New York Islanders centre and Toronto native Casey Cizikas).

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The other spots in the Top 10 are Koko in second, Snowy in third, Peach taking the No. 4 spot with Guinness, Ivy and Freya rounding out the Top 10.

Other trending names for dogs also include Purdy (Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers quarterback) Jeter (former New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter and Macklin (North Vancouver-born San Jose Sharks centre Macklin Celebrini).

Springer (Blue Jays star George Springer), Scottie (Toronto Raptors’ Scottie Barnes) and Kylian (French footballer Kylian Mbappe) were favourite choices for cat names.

New to the roster this year are Kelce, Buchanan and Ronaldo for dogs, and Deuce, Price and Alonso for cats.

As for cats, the top trending cat name is the very French-Canadian moniker Minou, which translates to “kitty.”

Ozzy (for the late Ozzy Osbourne) came in second, Sadie (Stranger Things and Spider-Man: Brand New Day actress Sadie Sink) nabbed the No. 3 spot, fourth place went to Juno (the premier music award in Canada) and fifth, Mila (That ‘70s Show star Mila Kunis) at No. 6 and Archie (Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan’s son) was in seventh.

Sunny snuck in to take the sixth spot, Mimi, another classic French-Canadian name, landed in eighth while food inspired ninth and 10th, thanks to Pickles and Miso, respectively.

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Shania, Tupac, Kendrick, Golden and Drake are becoming increasingly popular for dogs, while Usher, Sabrina, Presley, Snoop and Celine are cutting it for cat lovers.

Arguably the most entertaining data are the trending names inspired by food may be the most fascinating because, frankly, it would be kind of fun and totally hilarious to hear someone shouting “Croissant,” “Feta,” “Dill” or “Cannoli” to get the attention of a dog, or “Ramen,” “Popcorn,” “Chowder” or “Matcha” for a blissfully (un)aware felines.

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