When it comes to naming a dog, plenty of people choose something commonplace, like Spot, Rex, Fido, Patches and Buddy, but others go with something a little different. Some pet owners go with a more "human" moniker like Samantha or Charlie, while some opt for a name that is more unique. Well one man chose a name that seems harmless enough, but it wound up absolutely humiliating him.
He shared his story on Reddit, explaining how he named his pooch River, which for her entire life had never been an issue... until he took her on a hike with his family at a popular vacation spot. While everyone was enjoying their time, cooling off in a river, the dog caught the scent of something and ran off. Not wanting her to go too far away, the man started yelling after her.
In his post, he explained, "Today I [messed] up by calling out my dog's name, River, loudly and theatrically while standing in a river. We were on a cycle trail along a river which goes over a number of bridges. Beautiful day, the scenery is amazing. My dog, River, heads off downstream, obviously has a scent of something. After a few minutes you can barely see her in the distance. She's not coming to the whistle, so I go and stand on a prominent rock, and start shouting her name. For a solid minute and in multiple tones, I loudly bellow: 'RIVER! RIVERRR! RIVERRR!' There are people on the bridge above, there are family's around me having picnics. My family are laughing at me on the bank and I have no idea why."
As the pup ran back to her people, the man's family pointed out to him, "You're just shouting River at the river and none of these people know why."
He took it pretty well, noting, "I have been laughing on and off since."
It turns out he isn't the only one to suffer this kind of embarrassment. One commenter explained how they had a neighbor whose dog's name was Danger. They wrote, "Riding my bike past their house when suddenly, 'Danger! Danger!' I had a good laugh after my initial fear for safety." Another stated, "My dad’s dog was called Echo - an unfortunate name for a dog with a tendency to run off. Got some rather odd looks wandering round a park shouting Echo with no dog anywhere to be seen." One other shared, "We had a dog named Thunder. He went missing in the middle of a thunderstorm. Here was my dad in the middle of the street that night yelling for Thunder."
You can read more here.