Charlie leads the pack in 2023 as far as dog names in Saanich.
The district tracks name, breed and colour of licensed pooches in the community.
Charlie holds the name lead at 323 although Max - at 320 - could catch up if few move to town. Max and Charlie have been duking it out for a couple of years - in 2020, Max led with 346 registered pups, while Charlie lagged at 287.
That year Molly filled third position, but doesn’t appear at all in the top five for 2023. Lucy at 285, Bailey at 281 and Daisy at 235 round out this year’s numbers.
READ ALSO: Saanich’s doggy census tracks most popular names, breeds
So far this year, 6,670 dogs are registered in Saanich, which requires all dogs over the age of four months have a valid licence.
As far as breeds go, Labrador and lab mixes far and away hold the crown at 5,588 while golden retrievers (and mixes) sniff around in second at 1,892. Poodle (and mixes) are third most popular at 1,748 and German shepherd (and mixes) at
Bichon (and mixes) languish at the bottom of the dog pile at 625.
READ ALSO: Saanich shifts to permanent dog licences
Black is most common description offered by dog owners at 5,784, brown at 3,642, black and white 2,906, white 2,754 and golden 2,178.
Dog licences go on sale at the beginning of each year and are valid until Dec. 31.
Starting this year, Saanich contracts CRD Animal Services for enforcement of its animal bylaw and began issuing permanent dog tags which means one number is issued and will remain with Charlie, Max or Lucy each year as its renewed – still an annual requirement.
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christine.vanreeuwyk@blackpress.ca
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