In the third part of our cat care column, written by Bexley-based pet behaviourist Pauline Dewberry, who runs the website www.thedailymews.com, we look at the tricky business of choosing a name for your new kitty.
According to TS Eliot, cats must have three names. First, there is the name that the family use daily; next he needs a name more particular, peculiar and more dignified, and finally, there is the name that the cat knows himself and will never confess.
I am always surprised by what people choose to call their pets. If a cat has lost its leg then Tripod, Peg, and even Stumpy are often used. If you had a handicapped baby would you call him or her a name reflecting their disability?
Likewise, black cats are often called Sooty, Blackie, Storm or Shadow whereas white cats are usually Snowy, Blanco, Caspar, Coco (short for Coconut) or Boo.
Ginger cats often have rather lacklustre names like Ginge and Marmalade.
Cats that sport four white paws are often called Sox or Boots.
I’ve usually called my cats by ‘people’ names: Billy, Timmy, Joey, Charlie, Sam, Ricky, Ellie, Ollie.
Garfield was all ginger, so he was always going to be called Garfield and his brother Biggles was named by my son, David, as we’d just been to see the film Biggles at the cinema.
My current cats, two mackerel tabbies, are called Casey and Gibbs. Casey after our vet’s initials, KC, and Gibbs after Mark Harmon’s character in NCIS, Leroy Jethro Gibbs.
If you look at the top 10 names for cats, they are all people names.
If you’re looking for inspiration, then you could always look in a book of babies’ names.
If your kitten has been through some tough times, then look for a name to reflect ‘strength’ or ‘fearless’.
You could call your kittens after favourite characters in a book or television series, or after a film character – or the person playing that character.
Just be careful in your choice. What might seem hilarious after a few too many glasses of wine in the small hours of a Saturday night, your poor kitten has got to live with.
It could become awkward when the vet calls out Fatso. Virtually everyone in the waiting room will automatically suck in their stomachs and vow to join WeightWatchers the next morning, while the holder of the name skulks at the back of his carrier, too ashamed to be seen.
And be careful when calling your cats in for their meals. Calling out Dipstick, or worse, just as someone walks by could take a bit of explaining down at the police station when the cat doesn’t materialise, and the person takes it personally.
So, what did you call your cats and how did you choose their names? Do write and let us know by emailing simon.bull@london.newsquest.co.uk
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