# Changing the Newbie's Name?



## Konotashi (Jan 11, 2010)

I was wondering, since I have some names picked out for my future GSD and I plan to adopt, how could I change the dog's name to the name of my choosing with the four dogs we already have in the house? I very highly doubt that the dog I adopt will already have one of the names I have picked out, too. LOL 

Do I just sit there and repeat it over and over and over until he/she gets it?


----------



## ChristenHolden (Jan 16, 2010)

Jus keep calling the dog XXX. When you give a comand, take it out, or what ever you do with the dog. Call the dog XXX if it looks at you praise and reward. Bella learnd her name very fast it seems in less than 48hrs. I think she was mostly called Puppy. And did not have what I call a real name even at 5 months old. I bet any Adult GSD would learn just as fast. Dogs don't care about there names that's only for us  good luck and thanks for rescueing.


----------



## Holmeshx2 (Apr 25, 2010)

I agree with this just keep calling it's name and it will learn it basically like a command. While petting him/her say good XXX things like that they catch on pretty darn quick. 

Only problem I have with it is when I did rescue every once in awhile we'd have an owner surrender where the dog was like 7 yrs old or so and as soon as the rescue took the dog they changed its name which just irritated me because you knew the dogs background knew it spent 7 yrs going by this name why on earth change it for the heck of it then they'd learn the new name and the new family would change it again. Dog never seemed to mind but as a human it drove me insane knowing they had a name their entire life then changing it on them so much but with most rescues you don't know their backgrounds and they adapt rather quickly you just refer to them like you do you're other dogs like it's the name they've had their entire lives no big deal generally.


----------



## Jason L (Mar 20, 2009)

Unless it's a senior, I don't think it will be a problem.

Get a clicker, a whole bunch of treats, call the dog with his new name in a high pitch, excited voice, and when the dog looks, click/treat and do this a whole bunch of time in the first few days and the dog will learn his name very quickly.

Remember, during the first few days, the dog will be slightly nervous or stressed (or maybe more than slightly depend on the dog) and he will be looking for someone to bond with so it shouldn't be hard to use that time to teach the dog to respond to a new call name. 

My Dottie was dumped at the SPCA parking lot one night and no one had any idea what her name was. They named her Corragan but called her Jewel for a week and when we adopted her we renamed her Dottie. Took her about 1 day to know Dottie was now her name. Now she does a whiplash with her head whenever she hears her name.


----------



## Lilie (Feb 3, 2010)

I got my mini dach when she was five years old. The name she had just made my skin crawl. I didn't like anything about it, and it didn't match her at all. I created a name simular - both names ended in a 'y'. We made up a lot of games using her name - even resorting to puppy games, and used her new name. She never missed a beat. We've had her nearly two months now and I have already started to call her a shorter version, "Mags". She doesn't care what I call her, just as long as I do.


----------



## Anja1Blue (Feb 27, 2008)

If your dog comes with a name that it responds to - and lots of adoptees do - simply tack the new name onto the old one. Example: the dogs name is Chief, you want to call him Zach - just keep calling Chiefzach, Chiefzach come (or whatever, but come is the one he'll learn fast because you will also give him a treat.) You will need to keep your other dogs out of the way while you do it. After a few days you can drop the Chief part and just use his new name. That's what we did with Anja - her original name was Alberte which was a mouthful and we weren't too keen on it. She took just a very short time getting used to her new name using the above method.
_________________________________________
Susan

Anja SchH3 GSD
Conor GSD
Blue BH WH T1 GSD - waiting at the Bridge


----------

