# Have You Ever Named a Pet After a Tolkien Character?



## frodolives7601 (Sep 14, 2020)

A few days ago, I added four panda corydoras catfish to my aquarium (alas, I'm technically challenged, or I would post a photo). Since these fish "mine" the substrate for food, and since they have barbels which look like mustaches (about as close as fish get to beards), I have chosen to name them after four dwarves: Balin, Dwalin, Gimli, and Thorin.

I'm wondering--have you ever named a pet after a Tolkien character? If so, what kind of pet was he/she, and what led you to choose that particular name?


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## Squint-eyed Southerner (Sep 14, 2020)

When a friend and I went to college, we adopted a couple of young cats, one white, one (mostly) black, whom we named Saruman and Sharku, respectively. As for why -- "such questions cannot be answered". Two sides of a personality? 

BTW, it shouldn't be too difficult to post a photo here. Doing everything on my phone as I do, I just hit "Attach files", then "Gallery", and select the photo.


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## Olorgando (Sep 15, 2020)

Last time my parents and I had a pet was IIRC when that female Boxer-breed pup (but certainly 12 weeks old for air transport) arrived in the US from the breeder in Germany. She grew to a 35 kilogram (77 pound) bundle of muscle, and a slightly pudgy 38 kilograms (83 pounds) after she had been spayed. But her arrival was just before Christmas 1970. I didn't read anything by JRRT until 1983 (when my parents and I had left the US eight years before).


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## 1stvermont (Sep 15, 2020)

We have had chickens named Bilbo and Frodo. Try and name one of each batch a LOTR name.


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## Ealdwyn (Sep 15, 2020)

When I was a kid my dog, a poodle cross, was called Pippin.


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## frodolives7601 (Sep 15, 2020)

1stvermont said:


> We have had chickens named Bilbo and Frodo. Try and name one of each batch a LOTR name.


I love it!


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## Elthir (Sep 15, 2020)

I had a dog named Prince . . . close enough.

Imrahil?


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## frodolives7601 (Sep 15, 2020)

1stvermont said:


> We have had chickens named Bilbo and Frodo. Try and name one of each batch a LOTR name.


A further thought that occurred to me about your chickens--instead of Ringbearers, they were Eggbearers!


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## Squint-eyed Southerner (Sep 15, 2020)

Uh-oh.


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## Elthir (Sep 15, 2020)

At last, my plot begins to *hatch* . . .


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## Squint-eyed Southerner (Sep 15, 2020)

As a new member, frodolives may not get the yolk.

Or the danger of it boiling over. . .


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## Halasían (Sep 15, 2020)

My brother's cat is named *Mr Baggins*. He was a semi-feral stray that adopted my brother. When I was over visiting, he didn't mind me as long as I was the only one in the house while my brother was at work. He couldn't deal with two humans in the house though and would want outside to sit at a safe distance from the back door. Once one of us left, he would want back in.


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## Olorgando (Sep 15, 2020)

Elthir said:


> At last, my plot begins to *hatch* . . .


Two avatars in a single post ... 🤓


Squint-eyed Southerner said:


> As a new member, frodolives may not get the yolk.
> 
> Or the danger of it boiling over. . .
> View attachment 8055


Boiling? Or bacing? 🤓

BTW that Boxer female that was out last pet had to have a name starting with B, being from her mother's second litter.
Checking my Tyler "Companion" entries under B shows a distinct dearth of female names - I mean, Beruthiel?!?


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## Ealdwyn (Sep 16, 2020)

Olorgando said:


> BTW that Boxer female that was out last pet had to have a name starting with B, being from her mother's second litter.
> Checking my Tyler "Companion" entries under B shows a distinct dearth of female names - I mean, Beruthiel?!?


Beruthiel would have to be a cat, it just wouldn't be right for a dog


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## Olorgando (Sep 16, 2020)

IIRC, Queen Berúthiel didn't really *like* cats - so that would have fit. Before we got that Boxer female, we often saw muddy Raccoon pawprints on the (heavy, cast-iron) covering lids of our garbage cans - two of them, lids at ground level, the cans enclosed in a concrete (or at least cement) block - apparently for good reasons. That stopped immediately after we had gotten her as a pup (but at 12 weeks, already seriously bigger than even a Maine Coon cat, if with seriously oversized paws and fur). Boxers have an unusual habit (the name may derive from this, but of course the short, if not quite bulldog-short face is also a candidate) in that both in play as well as when decidedly not playful, they will slap with their front paws. I once found her circling a cat on the driveway part in front of the garage of our house (and some cats are definitely not critters some dogs should mess with), but she then attacked, sort of, with a cat-like front-paw slap. The cat avoided it (I was going to write easily, but I'm not sure anymore), and definitely decided to take a powder at top speed. Having dispatched the intruder, our Bessie jogged over to me wagging - not just her tail, when she was happy she basically did a sweet snake dance (I used to joke that the only thing not wagging was the tip of her nose!) as if to say "another pest that won't be bothering us anymore!" 😂


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## 1stvermont (Sep 16, 2020)

frodolives7601 said:


> A further thought that occurred to me about your chickens--instead of Ringbearers, they were Eggbearers!



we usually get a batch of 6 at a time but if we get 9, they must be named after the fellowship.

this spring was our first batch i did not name one after a Tolkien name. Instead, I gave_ her _the grand name of

"his imperial grace Lord Jerimiah Glass first of his name" no I am not joking, and yes, it is a perfect name for a chicken.


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## frodolives7601 (Sep 16, 2020)

1stvermont said:


> we usually get a batch of 6 at a time but if we get 9, they must be named after the fellowship.
> 
> this spring was our first batch i did not name one after a Tolkien name. Instead, I gave_ her _the grand name of
> 
> "his imperial grace Lord Jerimiah Glass first of his name" no I am not joking, and yes, it is a perfect name for a chicken.


That's a great name! I've read (especially in the fascinating book _Birdology_ by Sy Montgomery) that chickens are full of personality.


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## 1stvermont (Sep 16, 2020)

frodolives7601 said:


> That's a great name! I've read (especially in the fascinating book _Birdology_ by Sy Montgomery) that chickens are full of personality.



indeed they are. I hear ducks more so.


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## frodolives7601 (Sep 21, 2020)

I was focused on the fish when I started this thread but keep forgetting to mention that many years ago, I had a horse whom I named Gandalf (G. was at that time my favorite _LOTR_ character). The horse shared something of Gandalf's spirit, so as far as I was concerned, the name worked, but a friend and fellow Tolkien fan became quite annoyed with me when she learned that I had given the name to a horse that was neither grey nor white! (He was chestnut.)


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## Barliman (Dec 19, 2021)

I had two black cats in '74, one was named Elros Tar-Minyatur. Unfortunately I can't remember the name of the other. 
One died of feline leukemia and Elros got out of the car at my uncle's house when moving to Virginia and I never saw him again.
My uncle saw him outside after we'd left, but his wife wouldn't let him get him.


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## 1stvermont (Dec 26, 2021)

My borther named his former dog Tolkien.


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