Name That Horse

When I worked as a riding instructor at a summer camp, nearly half of the kids who came to ride were named either “Emma” or “Emily.” Okay, yes, that’s an exaggeration, but it seemed that way.

We recently compiled a list of the top names for mares, geldings and stallions based on Club Horse profiles. Apparently, the equine equivalent of “Emma” is “Buddy”. Or perhaps, more accurately, it’s the equine equivalent of “Jacob” or whatever the most popular boys’ name is now. I’ve met a few equine Buddys over the years, and it doesn’t come as a shock that it is the most common horse name among Club Horse members. It also made the top of SmartPak’s list of top ten horse names in 2011.

Get Our Free Weekly Enewsletter About Horses

The top name for mares here on HorseChannel is “Ginger”. Must be the timeless influence of Black Beauty.

Here are the full lists.

Mares	Geldings	Stallions	Overall
1. Ginger 2. Bella 3. Lady 4. Dixie 5. Misty 6. Star 7. Angel 8. Sassy 9. Missy 10. Annie	1. Buddy 2. Jack 3. Cody 4. Dakota 5. Prince 6. Rocky 7. Spirit 8. Shadow 9. Cowboy 10. Charlie	1. Moe 2. Shadow 3. Spirit 4. Barbaro* 5. Charlie 6. Thunder 7. Buddy 8. Prince 9. Romeo 10. Blaze	1. Buddy 2. Star 3. Dakota 4. Shadow 5. Ginger 6. Bella 7. Lady 8. Spirit 9. Jack 10. Dixie

*Yes, Barbaro’s high ranking in the stallions category is primarily due to fan pages for the late racehorse. Because there are relatively few stallions with Club Horse profiles, the fan pages were enough to skew the result. Not that there’s anything wrong with naming your horse Barbaro.

Personally, I’m a fan of unique names. Snoopy, of course, isn’t all that original. I’ve known at least two others. But his name didn’t make our lists, nor did it make SmartPak’s top 100, so it’s unique enough (but I can’t take credit; that’s the name he had when I met him.)

If I ever have the opportunity to name a horse, I’d probably avoid the common ones. There’s nothing wrong with calling your horse Dusty or Stormy or Star or one of the other popular horse names, but sometimes it’s nice having a unique name. I’d also probably avoid any common human names. A boarder at my old barn had a horse named Jake. Her boyfriend was also named Jake. I have to imagine that led to some awkward misunderstandings.

I always like when horses are named after other animals. I’ve known a few “Bears” and a “Cat” or two. Among the more unique were “Bug” and “Starfish.” Once we did a photo shoot here at Horse Illustrated with a horse named “Dog.”

Did your horse’s name make the list? How do you go about choosing a horse’s name? Let me know in the comments section below.

Back to The Near Side

12 years ago

Kygal says:
January 26, 2012 at 3:36 pm
Three horses and not one made the top ten. Maybe the have unique names which I highly doubt because I have seen other horses with same names with exception of my mare Shyner. Its good to have this list so you know the most popular names to avoid:)
Molly says:
January 26, 2012 at 3:43 pm
My son ended up naming our new horse "Morris" after Morris the cat - very appropriate, he's fussy about water, finicky about his food and swishes his tail when annoyed. - Because he's from Canada, my vet calls him "Maurice" - Love my horse!
Catherine says:
January 26, 2012 at 4:43 pm
I agree with choosing a little more uncommon name for your horses, I have 2 mares one is Ambrosia and the other is Nutmeg, both were the names they had when I purchased them, and I love their names and they suit each one of my gilrs !
Nic says:
January 26, 2012 at 4:49 pm
My horse came with his name... If I could change it though I would probably call him Hawk.
Susan says:
January 26, 2012 at 5:31 pm
I named my horse Bandit.....because as a 2 yr old he sole my heart. Now I call him Bogee...long o and eeee. He so fits this better. He is 1/4 arabian & rest paint. He chews on everything.....has more personality that anyone I know...go figure....guess it just fits him better.
Sheri says:
January 26, 2012 at 5:42 pm
My horse is a grey Paso Fino, I started calling her Girl when I bought her and it became Siloam Silver Girl. I live in Siloam Springs and she is silver.
Ken says:
January 26, 2012 at 5:49 pm
My horse had a registered name of Wind Chester Gab sinvr my middle name is Chester as is my dad and gradfather I kept the name. However most folks think he is named after the gun and want to spell it that way. He is my parade, trail and hunt horse.
connie says:
January 26, 2012 at 6:27 pm
My horse's name is Pirate. He came with this name. He is a Pirate, all the way.... arrrrrrgh
Robin says:
January 26, 2012 at 6:43 pm
I have a gelding named Pilot. I’ve had him from the time he was 4 months old. He has always had a gentle spirit, just as my dad did. Pilot will turn 3 this year. Pilot was named in remembrance of my dad; they share the same birthday, born on April 21st. My dad was an aerial sprayer; he also gave flying lessons, chartered flights, hunted fox and coyote from an airplane in the winter to support our family. He had special skies on the airplane so he could land in fields to retrieve the fox and coyote. My dad passed away in 1995, but his spirit lives on with my horse named Pilot. By the way Pilot is a beautiful buckskin paint!!
Meredith says:
January 26, 2012 at 6:52 pm
My horse's name is Information, and I call him "Info." He got that name because he was trained at the Nevada State Prison in the BLM Mustang program and his number was, the telephone number to call for information.