Is it ok to change adopted dog's name?

[Nataleejah]

He was Barry, but i've called him Rudis... I'm not English, and i called him so he reminds me of my homeland (Rudis is a common dogs name there)... And so i show that i love him that he's part of my family

I'd have liked to have changed my dogs name but hes a bit dim so probably wouldnt have learnt it so we are stuck with a Bob

Rudis is a good name. What does it mean?

Just his previous family said its not nice.

Well they arent his family now are they?

Well he's your dog now and it's up to you what you call him. Plus, they chose Barry. People in glass houses and all that!

Barry !!! My rescue was called Staligmite when I got him do there was no way I could keep that. He was a stray and had only been in that centre for a few weeks so don't think he was that used to it thank god.

As long as you say it with love, warmth and affection he will love whatever you call him. And his "old family" aren't reaLly his family if they have had to gove him up after 5 months are they - unless there was a v v good reason !

Rudis it means a brown dog in Lithuanian, its like to call a black dog Blackie. My grandmother's neighbor had a Rudis when i was little. Therefore the affection.

Family had a good reason to give him up, they were being evicted :(

Good name OP! He sounds lovely.

It's a shame his previous family aren't happy, but he is your dog now and if the name change is going to help you bond with him quicker, it's in his best interests which hopefully they will come to understand. (Who calls a dog 'Barry' anyway???!)

He sounds lovely, and Rudis is a very appropriate name.

SelectASpaniel was eight when we rescued him and we changed his name straight away. We chose something that had a similar rhythm and end-sound to his old name and he started responding to his new name after two days.

Hope you and Rudis have many happy years together, OP, and well done for taking on an older dog.

Absolutely fine to change a dog's name imo.

My dog usually responds to his name but has been known to respond at jaw-breaking speed to 'Come HERE! NOW!'.

As somebody else said, it's tone of voice more than name .

I am sure he will be fine.

Our male rescue was previously called Blake......he's not now!

i had two rescue dogs, one called yaz (a rotweiller with aggression issues ) we kept that name - wasn't gonna argue! :) and a JRT called gollum - gollum? i don't think so! To be fair they were both names the rescue gave them so i doubt they grew attached to them. We almost adopted a staffie called Dave (now THAT would have been awkward!)

Barry! LMAO!

Totally fine to change his name, and Rudis is great. Just use it plenty, back it up with fun and food. I wish you many happy years together.

Its fine to change his name, he is yours now. And its a two syllable word so will sound similar to him.

When I worked in rescue we would keep the dogs name if we knew it, but with strays we had to give them a new name. Believe me its hard coming up with new names for dogs.and cats every day, that's why rescue animals often have weird names!

No fucking way would I have a dog called Barry. Its your dog now you can call him what you like and Rudis is a good name

I quite like Barry! But I have a Stanley who came with the name, and the name really suits him.
I used to have a rescue cat that came to me with the name Squirt. For reasons that soon became apparent (late neutering). I always regretted not changing his name but he used to come to it just fine, and to a whistle, "FOOD" or the clanging of a spoon on a KittyKat tin.
"COME HERE YOU FURRY LITTLE BUGGER" used to have the exact opposite effect, funnily enough, as does the word "bath" to Stanley.

Our dog we bought from a breeder in France, and for ages she responded to p'tit p'tit p'tit very cute!!

She also knew basic commands in French, like sit and come, and had no problem understanding that two differnt words have the same meaning. Of course, she is a uniquely clever dog.....

We rescued an Afghan when i was little, we changed her from Smokey to Polly by calling her Smokey- Polly for a few weeks.

We changed our rescue dogs name, it took her a couple of days to get used to it and now she is fine. She was 2 at the time we got her.

It is fine! Dog's don't realise they have names.
They just know there is a specific noise or sound which means 'my master wants my attention'
All rescue dogs that are found as strays are given new names, and they soon adapt

I joke to DH that our dogs know two sets of commands, because his accent means his versions of 'sit, down, wait etc' sound very different to mine. They still know what we mean though

Are his previous family still having contact with him?

I can understand why they feel upset if circumstances have meant they can't care for their pet and now you've changed his name. It's about losing him, isn't it?

Is he yours yours, iyswim, or is it long term fostering with agreement that if they find themselves on their feet, he goes home?

I like Barry for a dog.

But you call him what you like OP. He'll be fine.

My friend changed her adopted cat's name. She was called Bimbo which was okay in the language of the previous owners.

My Aunt rescued a beautiful Doberman when I was a kid, she was an elegant, happy dog who was unbelievably good natured considering the catalogue of abuse that had befallen her. Her name was 'Zeus'. This conjured up far too many images of snappy devil dog and so Zeus became Luce became Lucy.

I confess though I do like Barry

We nearly called one dog 'Humbug' (she was black and white in stripes) because her name was too close to that of our existing dog - but found a different one that was less embarrassing to shout - Humbug would have been quite good though. Ours responds to 'Oi' quickest when she's decided to go a bit deaf...