Zoo-Inspired Dog Names

Though it may seem like not much of a stretch to name a dog "Wolfie", it still does pay homage to wild roots - especially if you happen to have a pup that looks quite a bit like a wolf. If this name sounds familiar to you, you may be having flashbacks to Terminator 2, where the character played by Arnold Schwarzenegger keeps referring to Max (the dog) as "Wolfie". While this poor pooch met an untimely end - no doubt scarring every dog-lover in the theater - what is interesting is where this canine character got his name from.

Director James Cameron actually sourced the name from his own household. That's right - Wolfie was the name of one of James' fur-babies. To take things even further, this family-member-turned-film-star made a cameo in the original Terminator movie as one of Sarah Connor's canines. And thinking of the director wanting his beloved pooch to have a timeless place preserved in film history almost warms the heart enough to make up for what he did to the fictional pups in the sequel.

In more recent pop culture, you don't have to dive deep on Instagram to find zoo-themed doggos in the spotlight. Take Tuna, for instance.  This Dachshund/Chihuahua crossbreed makes underbites beautiful - much to the delight of his nearly 2,000,000 followers! This fishy "Chiweenie" even meets up with fans for meet-and-greets around the world. Looking at his precious face, it is hard to imagine that someone abandoned this wee boy, but it's true that Tuna's beginning was not so glamorous.

His owner, Courtney, rescued him when he was only 4 months old and started documenting the adorableness she found in his unique features. Now that she has the attention of millions, she is drawing their focus to how important rescuing dogs really is. Who knows what Tuna's fate would have been if Courtney had not met him that day? And that is the truth - hundreds of thousands of dogs sit in shelters, scared and alone, not understanding why their family is gone. Take a look at Tuna's story for yourself if you want more proof of how amazing rescue pups truly are!

Both of these zoo-inspired doggos have made a big impact on society, and a big reason of why we remember their names is because it's so easy to visualize the creatures being referenced. If you go with a zoo animal name, you'll likely see how easy it is for people to recall your pupper, too!