If you yell the name “Bella” out at a Dunedin dog park, expect a swarm of labrador retrievers to answer the call.<\/p>\n
As 2025 wraps up,\u00a0the Dunedin City Council\u00a0has released what names\u00a0the city\u2019s residents are dishing out to man\u2019s best friends.<\/p>\n
A council spokeswoman said the name Bella came in at No1, with 192 dogs in the city claiming the name.<\/p>\n
Bella is a long-standing favourite for dog owners and has taken the top spot multiple times over the past eight years.<\/p>\n
Luna and Charlie came in at Nos2 and 3 respectively \u2014 with 179 and 177 each.<\/p>\n
Rounding out the rest of the list were Ruby, Poppy, Daisy, Molly, Max, Buddy and Millie.<\/p>\n
In terms of dog breeds, Dunedinites love their labrador retrievers, which take first place, the city being home to 2351 of them.<\/p>\n
A distant second is the trusty border collie with 1549, and third place goes to the Staffordshire bull terrier with 922 dogs registered.<\/p>\n
The rest of the list, in order, consisted of huntaways, shih tzus, cocker spaniels, Jack Russell terriers, golden retrievers, Malteses and miniature schnauzers.<\/p>\n
This year proved to be a busy year for the council animal services team, who helped find homes for 30 dogs who found themselves at the pound.<\/p>\n
They were helped by Dog Rescue Dunedin to rehome them.<\/p>\n
Their highlight however, was holding 105 dog safety sessions in Dunedin schools and kindergartens \u2014 up from 96 sessions in 2024.<\/p>\n
“[The sessions give] kids a great chance to learn about dog body language, what to do if they see a dog out, how to ask an owner before patting, and what to do if a dog is aggressive,” the spokeswoman said.<\/p>\n