Meet My Son Spike, My Schnauzer Samantha

When Mike Myers recently named his son Spike, there were several comments on Nameberry.com and on our Facebook page along the lines of: "Did his wife have a puppy?" and "Bit doggy for me." Not very kind, perhaps, but it does bring back the subject of the blurring of the line between human and canine names, at a time when babies are being named Buster and Buddy, and pups are commonly called Chloe and Mia.

So little Spike won't be alone in his name zone. Other celebs have provided him with a number of comparably-named prospective (if older) playmates. There's Michelle Hicks and Jonny Lee Miller's Buster, Rosanne Barr's Buck, Jamie Oliver's Buddy Bear and Alicia Silverstone's Bear, Justine Bateman's Duke, Damon Dash's Lucky, Gerard Way's Bandit and Robert Rodriguez's Rocket, as well as the poodle-ready Coco (Courtney Cox and David Arquette), Gigi (Cynthia Rowley), Fifi (Bob Geldof) and Zuzu (Tania Peterson).

But are these still the kinds of names that are actually given to dogs today, when they are considered more members of the family than pets? The answer is a resounding no! Traditional monikers like Fido and Rover, Spot, and Champ have virtually disappeared, to be replaced by popular people names. In fact, looking at the list of top names for dogs might make your head spin as it's so similar to the top babies' names lists.

Here are some of the leading canine names, with their comparative dog and human popularity rankings (puppy numbers on the left, kids on the right), so you won't be too surprised if a Corgi comes running when you call out your child's name in the park:

And here for an added bit of trivial pursuit, a comparison of some celebrities' naming styles for their human and pet darlings: