Ways to use this list
- Family vote: everyone adds one name to the list, then run a 🏆 Tournament so the names meet in heats and a final with the whole family watching.
- Shortlist: set Winners to 3, spin, and keep any name you love. After a few spins you have a shortlist without reading the whole list twice.
- Class pets: each pupil suggests one name, the class adds them to the wheel on the board, and the winner goes on the hamster cage label that afternoon.
- A tank of new fish: press Fish and set Winners to the number of fish, so every one gets a different name in a single spin.
- Stories and pretend play: a toy vet's surgery or a story about a pet shop needs plenty of names, and young children love spinning for each patient.
Press Spin the wheel, tap the game or press the Space bar. Change the list in the box as you
like: add your own, delete what doesn't suit you, or write *2 after an entry to give it double the
chance. The game buttons switch the same list to a duck race, hat, claw machine and more.
The full list (77 entries)
- Biscuit – for a golden-brown dog or rabbit
- Pickle – for a green lizard or a cheeky puppy
- Waffles
- Bean
- Pepper – for a pet with black and white speckles
- Mochi – a soft Japanese rice cake, for a round, fluffy pet
- Noodle – for a long snake or a floppy puppy
- Toffee
- Pudding
- Nugget
- Tater Tot
- Peanut
- Muffin
- Dumpling
- Honey – for a pale golden coat
- Fudge
- Truffle
- Crumpet – a British griddle cake full of holes
- Luna – Latin for "moon"
- Maple – the tree that gives maple syrup
- Hazel – a nut tree, and an eye colour
- Juniper – an evergreen shrub
- Willow
- Clover – a four-leaf one is a lucky find
- Daisy
- Poppy
- Ruby – a red gemstone
- Sprout
- Bramble – a wild blackberry bush
- Olive
- Nibbles
- Popcorn – happy guinea pigs leap in the air, called popcorning
- Hamlet – a pun for a hamster
- Hopscotch – for a bouncy rabbit
- Cinnamon
- Butterscotch
- Pip – a tiny name for a mouse or hamster
- Cocoa
- Gingersnap
- Bubbles
- Finley – it has "fin" in it
- Goldie – for a goldfish
- Splash
- Ripple
- Coral – reefs are built by tiny sea animals
- Captain Fin
- Gulp
- Swish
- Marina – from the Latin for "of the sea"
- Polly – the classic parrot name
- Echo – for a parrot that copies voices
- Sunny
- Piper – for a bird that never stops singing
- Breeze
- Lemon – for a yellow canary
- Pistachio – for a green budgie
- Chirpy
- Feather
- Blueberry – for a blue budgie
- Shelly – for a tortoise or turtle
- Speedy – a joke name for a slow tortoise
- Spike – for a bearded dragon
- Zigzag – for a snake
- Scales
- Rex – Latin for "king"
- Cactus – for a prickly-looking lizard
- Milo
- Coco
- Ollie
- Bruno
- Teddy – for a pet as fluffy as a toy bear
- Scout
- Socks – for a pet with white paws
- Gizmo
- Rocket – for a speedy pet, or as a joke for a slow one
- Ziggy
- Ginger – for a ginger cat or hamster
Questions people ask
How do we choose between favorites fairly?
Put your shortlist in the list and choose 🏆 Tournament: names compete in heats and a final. Everyone sees each round, so the winner feels chosen by the whole family rather than by whoever argued loudest.
Do you have dog-only or cat-only names?
Yes, on their own pages: the dog name generator and the cat name generator. This page covers any pet, with buttons for small furry pets, fish, birds and reptiles, and no name repeats between the three.
Can I add a photo of my pet?
Yes: add it in 🖼️ Photos and it appears on the wheel and the winner card. Save the card once the name is chosen and you have a first portrait to send the family.
What makes a good name for a small pet?
Rabbits, hamsters and guinea pigs suit short, soft names like Pip, Fudge or Nibbles that young children can say easily. Choose one the family will still like in years to come, since a pet rabbit can live for 8 to 12 years.
Should pets in the same home have different-sounding names?
Yes. Names that sound alike, such as Coco and Cocoa, are easy to mix up, both for the family and for animals that learn their names. Pick two with different first sounds and a different number of syllables.
Which names suit fish, birds and reptiles?
Press Fish, Birds or Reptiles above. Water words such as Ripple and Splash suit fish, a talking parrot might be Echo, and a slow tortoise called Speedy or Rocket always gets a smile.