Life

Kimberly Boyles/Shutterstock

These Valentine's Day Names For Cats Are The Perfect Way To Honor Your Newest Love

by Cat Bowen

If you are looking for real love this Valentine's Day, the kind that wakes you up in the morning by singing your praises, then look no further than your local pet shelter. Honestly, loving a pet is the surest Valentine there is. If you've done the flowers and chocolate thing and you truly want to bring a pet into your lives, rescue cats are aces. (Although they won't sing your praises because cats.) And if you do adopt this Feb. 14, you'll need some Valentine's day names for cats, because theme names are the best names.

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) noted on its website that "approximately 6.5 million companion animals enter U.S. animal shelters nationwide every year. Of those, approximately 3.3 million are dogs and 3.2 million are cats." And every year, about 860,000 cats will be euthanized. That's such a sad statistic, and as a lover of animals — and the pet mom of two rescue cats and a rescue dog — I wholly believe in finding your forever friend at a shelter. If you've always wanted a cat and you're prepared to take care of one and love one, Valentine's Day is a great time to share the love of animals with your family by adopting a feline friend. And picking out a Valentine's Day name for your cat, like Cupid or Lovebug, just makes the adoption that much sweeter.

Candy Names

Giphy

What is more quintessentially Valentine than chocolate? You can't go to Target or Walgreens without hitting up the huge aisle filled with sweet confections in heart-shaped boxes, and my favorite part of the holiday growing up was buying Valentine's Hershey bars to sign for my classmates.

Plus, candy names are adorable names for cats or dogs, and there's just something truly hilarious about naming a tiny predator that would absolutely eat you if they could after something sugary and sweet. (OK, so not all cats would devour you like Sunday supper, but in my household, you'd have a 50/50 shot of making it out of my house alive if my cats were any bigger.)

  • Snickers
  • Gumdrop
  • Kisses
  • KitKat
  • Bit O' Honey
  • Sprinkles
  • Fireball (if you adopt a ginger cat, obviously)
  • Licorice
  • Rocher
  • Godiva

All About That Lore

Giphy

Valentine's Day has an incredibly dark history related to the martyrdom of one of two possible Christians named Valentine during the Roman Empire, according to National Public Radio. But, like all great modern holidays, it's somehow been twisted to be all about love, the roman god Cupid, and buying a plethora of gifts and fancy meals. Win. That doesn't mean you can't embrace your inner history nerd and absolutely use the lore and history of the periods to name your cat. You can and you should. Seriously, my cats are named for characters in Kurt Vonnegut and Charles Dickens' novels. I know from which I speak.

  • Valentine
  • Valentino
  • Nero
  • Cupid
  • Cesar
  • Claudius
  • Lupercalia
  • Gelasius
  • Rome
  • Roman

Love Words

Giphy

Since it's normal to celebrate the holiday as the holiday of love, why not use some of the best words to describe the emotion, and give it to your cat? Hopefully it will smooth out their personality and you'll end up with a tiny little lover instead of the slayer of your sofa. It's worth a shot at least, right?

These names are drawn from the word "love" in different languages, as well as their actions, like "kiss" or "hug." They're cozy names inspired by what you're feeling when adopting a new friend.

  • Amore (Italian)
  • Adore (French)
  • Love
  • Abrazo (Spanish for hug)
  • Beso (Spanish for kiss)
  • Bise (French for kiss)
  • Poppet (British slang endearment)
  • Milý (Czech for male love or heartthrob)
  • Rakkaus (Finnish for love)
  • Objatie (Slovak for hug)

Winter Names

Giphy

If you live in the northern hemisphere, you're well aware of how cold it usually is on Valentine's Day. That means that when you go to adopt your new BFFL, you're likely going to require snow boots, a scarf, mittens, and a hat. Why not take those words, or words like them, and use them to warm your little kitty's heart? Winter names are quite possibly the cutest out there, and anyone who lived through the 90s will be well aware of a certain famous Presidential cat named Socks. If you're looking for a great name, you needn't look any further than right before your face.

  • Mittens
  • Snow
  • Snowdrop
  • Winter
  • Snowball
  • Boots
  • Chilly Willy
  • Cocoa
  • Snowflake
  • Mr./Mrs. Freeze