Beaux is the French plural of beau (beautiful, handsome) — a word that in English means an admirer or suitor, but carries a specific Southern American connotation of elegant masculinity and old-money charm. At rank 2565 with 35 registry appearances, pets named Beaux are typically Southern-owned male dogs whose owners want a name that reads as both handsome and slightly formal.
The Southern Register
In the American South, Beau (and its variant spelling Beaux) carries a specific cultural weight: it's the name of the charming young man at the plantation who knows how to dress for dinner and dance at a debutante ball. As a pet name, it signals a particular owner aesthetic — elegant, traditional, slightly theatrical. Catahoula Leopard Dogs and American Foxhounds wear it naturally.
The Spelling Distinction
Beaux versus Beau is a choice with real implications. Beau is the standard English form; Beaux is the French plural, which gives it an extra layer of Francophile formality. Owners who choose Beaux are typically making a deliberate aesthetic decision about the extra visual weight the X provides.
The Counter-Reading: Sound vs. Spelling Gap
Beaux and Beau are pronounced identically, which means the X is entirely visual. Owners who love the spelling should know that every verbal introduction sounds the same as the simpler form. The distinction only matters in writing.