Planet Inspired Dog Names

The most popular dog named after a planet is Disney’s animated character “Pluto.” Pluto is the pet and best friend of Mickey Mouse, the most prominent character in the Disney world. Unlike most characters in Disney, Pluto does not have human-like features; he is not capable of speaking, walking on two feet, and he doesn’t wear human clothing -- he’s simply a normal dog. 

Pluto’s character is represented by a medium-sized Bloodhound and Pointer mix that’s yellow-orange in color, short-coated, and has black ears. He is well-trained yet mischievous. Similar to Mickey Mouse, Pluto often finds himself in trouble but he is smart enough to know how to escape the unfortunate circumstances. He first made his debut in 1930 as an unnamed Bloodhound dog in Mickey Mouse’s “The Chain Gang.” For his second appearance, the same Bloodhound got re-established as Minnie Mouse’s pet dog in “The Picnic.” In 1931, the mixed Bloodhound once again made an appearance in another Mickey Mouse short under the title “The Moose Hunt,” where his character got finalized as “Pluto.”  Since then, his character has not changed and he was officially recognized by film-goers as Pluto, the best friend and sidekick pet of Mickey Mouse. 

Generally, Pluto is fun-loving and adventurous. He is very loyal to his master, highly capable, and intelligent. But, in spite of this, he still have a few clumsy moments. There are moments where he panics when encountering something strange or foreign. One interesting aspect in Pluto’s character is that he has both an angel and a devil on his shoulder - the two characters represent his good and evil consciences. These two appear whenever Pluto gets himself involved in a difficult situation, the devil works his best to convince the dog to make the wrong decision while the angel does otherwise.

Pluto’s appearances are mostly from Mickey Mouse comics, shorts, and series but on rare occasions, he would also make an appearance in other Disney character’s film or series. Oddly enough, instead of being paired with Mickey Mouse, Pluto got paired with Donald Duck for 6 different cartoons: Donald & Pluto, Beach Picnic, Window Cleaners, Donald’s Dog Laundry, The Eyes Have It and Put Put Troubles.

To this day, Pluto continues to appear in different Disney cartoons, specifically in the Mickey Mouse franchise. He is one of the leading and most recognized characters of Walt Disney alongside Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, and Goofy.