You’ve fallen for a bonded pair of cats at the shelter, and you’re bringing them both home. While you stock up on clumping cat litter and clear a spot by the window, you’re also trying to decide what pet names will go with those two adorable little faces.
It’s even more fun to come up with geeky names for pets when there’s a second character in the scene. A sci-fi friendship, a gaming partnership or an extremely specific programming joke gives their names a shared story. The best pet names for pairs still work when you call each one separately, though. Chewie needs a name of his own even when Han is asleep.
Whether you are getting new cats, dogs, a bonded pair of bunnies or some combination of cuties, pick the duo that reminds you of your two.
Geeky Names for Pets: Our Favorite Pairs
- Mulder and Scully: The X-Files gives you a believer and a skeptic. Mulder can investigate whatever lives behind the refrigerator while Scully watches from a chair, unconvinced that this case requires her participation.
- Han and Chewie: Borrow the Star Wars smuggler and his Wookiee copilot for a confident little schemer and an enormous shaggy shadow. Chewie gets bonus points if he already communicates through an elaborate range of grumbles.
- Morticia and Gomez: The Addams Family’s devoted couple suits two elegant cats who look permanently dressed for a candlelit dinner. Particularly good if they groom each other’s faces and then judge your outfit together.
- Fetch and Merge: Two Git commands, one very dog-friendly joke. Fetch is the ball enthusiast; Merge joins any cuddle already in progress, regardless of whether there’s room.
- Crowley and Aziraphale: Good Omens’ demon-and-angel partnership is made for a sleek schemer and a soft, apparently innocent companion. Aziraphale is a mouthful, admittedly; Azi is much easier when you’re asking him to get off a sandwich.
- Rocket and Groot: The Guardians of the Galaxy pair gives you a sharp little troublemaker and his much bigger, gentler friend. Assign Rocket to whoever starts the trouble; Groot can be the one who looks apologetic afterward.
- Ping and Pong: WebSocket messages use Ping and Pong to check that a connection is alive. Borrow them for two chatterboxes who hold lengthy conversations from opposite ends of the hall, preferably while you’re on a call.
- Finn and Jake: Adventure Time’s human-and-magical-dog double act works for two cheerful explorers. Their next epic quest can involve the park, a stick and the suspicious patch of grass they inspected yesterday.
- Howl and Calcifer: A dramatic wizard and a fire demon from Howl’s Moving Castle. Ideal for your extravagantly beautiful cat and an orange sidekick who appears to be keeping the whole place running through sheer indignation.
- Loki and Sylvie: Marvel’s Loki and his alternate-timeline counterpart suit two mischief-makers with suspiciously similar ideas about rules. Different faces, same determination to find out what happens when they push that glass a little farther.
- Aang and Appa: An airbender and his flying bison, courtesy of Avatar: The Last Airbender. Try Aang on your quick little trailblazer and Appa on his enormous, fluffy friend, especially if the smaller one chooses the route.
- Wednesday and Enid: The gloomy-and-sunny roommates from Wednesday make a lovely pair for opposites with very different social calendars. One would like you to leave; the other has already climbed into your visitor’s bag.
- Wanda and Vision: The Marvel couple behind WandaVision gives you a striking pair of names for two inseparable companions. Use them if your two look perfectly domestic until you notice the curtains moving by themselves.
- Dipper and Mabel: Gravity Falls’ mystery-solving twins give you a serious investigator and an exuberant partner. Save Mabel for whoever greets a familiar visitor as though the reunion requires its own parade.
- Pinky and Brain: The cartoon lab mice spend their nights planning world domination. Give Brain to the one studying the cupboard latch and Pinky to the one who interrupts the planning meeting by falling off the ottoman.
- Vi and Jinx: Arcane’s sisters bring two short, punchy names for a pair who turn a quiet afternoon into a dramatic production. Jinx practically assigns herself the first time she looks you in the eye and knocks something over.
- Gimli and Legolas: The Lord of the Rings dwarf-and-elf friendship works beautifully for a short, sturdy companion and a tall, elegant one. Even better if they turn every race to the back door into a competition.
- Wallace and Gromit: An inventor and the dog who has to cope with his inventions. Give Wallace to the enthusiastic bungler and Gromit to the one whose long, patient stare could replace several paragraphs of complaint.
- Marceline and Bubblegum: Adventure Time’s vampire queen and candy princess suit a dark, aloof beauty and her sweeter-looking girlfriend. Don’t let the pastel name fool you; Bubblegum can still be the one running the place.
- Hiccup and Toothless: The boy-and-dragon friendship from How to Train Your Dragon suits two devoted adventure buddies. Toothless is a particularly good name for a black dog with an enormous, slightly ridiculous grin.
- Zuko and Iroh: Avatar’s intense young firebender and his wiser uncle fit a restless youngster and a mellow older companion. Iroh belongs in the warmest chair, supervising the drama from a comfortable distance.
- Merry and Pippin: Tolkien’s hobbit friends are excellent names for two sociable companions who join in everything. They don’t need a quest to Mordor, but they would appreciate knowing whether this trip includes lunch.
- Chihiro and Haku: Spirited Away’s brave girl and dragon companion lend a little wonder to two curious companions who investigate everything together. Haku has an especially lovely sound for a pale rabbit with an otherworldly stare.
- Doc and Marty: Back to the Future’s time-traveling friends suit a scruffy older dog and the younger accomplice who follows him everywhere. Especially good if getting out the door for a walk routinely disrupts your entire timeline.
- Sherlock and Watson: Arthur Conan Doyle’s detective and his doctor companion suit two pets who must personally examine every delivery. Sherlock gets into the box first; Watson sits nearby looking as though he’ll be writing this up later.
- Ratchet and Clank: These PlayStation adventure-game partners belong on a pair of curious tinkerers who investigate every new object together, then leave you to deal with any loose parts.
- Chell and GLaDOS: Portal’s resourceful test subject and controlling AI are a good fit for your silent acrobat and very vocal supervisor. Gladys makes a nicely ordinary everyday nickname for GLaDOS, which only improves the joke.
- Totoro and Mei: The forest spirit and little girl from My Neighbor Totoro suit a big, plush-looking bun and a smaller explorer. Totoro is a particularly good name for whoever looks most like an animated throw pillow.
- Buffy and Willow: The vampire slayer and her witch best friend make excellent names for two girls who have each other’s backs. One can handle suspicious noises; the other can work on magically opening the treat cupboard.
- Wash and Zoe: Firefly’s pilot and his formidable wife offer a less obvious sci-fi pairing. Give Wash to your goofy sweetheart and Zoe to the one who can stop his nonsense with a single look.
- Jessie and James: Pokémon’s Team Rocket duo lends its names to two determined schemers whose plans are more ambitious than successful. Strong contenders if their joint attempt to steal dinner usually ends with a panicked exit from the kitchen.
- Banjo and Kazooie: Borrow this video-game bear and his bird companion for your cuddly homebody and a sharper, chattier friend. Kazooie is also remarkably satisfying to say when someone has stolen a sock.
- Soot and Sprite: Split Studio Ghibli’s soot sprites into two names for a pair of dark, fluffy bunnies. Real dust bunnies can now be distinguished from the ones who need feeding.
- Lilo and Stitch: Disney’s little girl and her alien best friend are a good fit for a loving pair with uneven manners. Stitch belongs to the one who makes you explain that he’s actually very sweet once you get to know him.
- Sudo and Root: A Unix joke for a pair who behave as though they have administrator access to your life. If you close the bedroom door, they’d like to escalate that request.
- WALL-E and EVE: Pixar’s robot sweethearts give you a curious little collector and an elegant companion. Brown-and-white coloring helps the reference along, but the important part is how pleased they look when they find each other.
- Sokka and Toph: Avatar’s wisecracker and formidable earthbender make a strong pairing for an opinionated pair. Toph is obviously the one who plants all four feet when you suggest heading home.
- Nibble and Byte: A nibble is four bits; a byte is eight. That makes a neat computing joke for a smaller pet and a bigger one, with a chewing reference that makes it especially good for bunnies.
- Beep and Boop: No elaborate lore required, just two little robot noises. They’re especially sweet names for cats who chirp at each other, and you get to sound like a malfunctioning appliance at dinnertime.
The right pair should make you smile even when you’re sweeping up the remains of a cardboard castle. Pick the names that sound like your two, then let them grow into the joke.
If this is your first time sharing your home with pets, start with our best cat gadgets and best dog gadgets guides. They cover the tech that makes the first few months easier, from feeders that keep two eaters on their own menus to GPS trackers for the one who always finds the open gate.
For more ideas, browse our geeky dog names, cat names and bunny names.
