Is Digby a good pet name?

Digby is a well-known pet name with 38 registered pets. Pets named Digby are often described as bumbling, lovable, enthusiastic.

Is Digby a boy or girl pet name?

Digby is more commonly given to male pets, though it can be used for any pet.

Digby: Popular Pet Name — Meaning & Trends

Meaning & Story

From the Old Norse place name Dicgeby, meaning Digr's settlement — Digby is an English place name and surname that became a first name, associated with Sir Kenelm Digby the 17th century philosopher and the beloved story of Digby the World's Biggest Dog.

Digby has a lovably eccentric quality that sits somewhere between distinguished and goofy. The name is strongly associated with Digby, the World's Biggest Dog — the 1973 British film about an oversized Old English Sheepdog whose sheer size creates gentle chaos wherever he goes. On a large, fluffy dog with more enthusiasm than spatial awareness, Digby is inspired. But it also works for any male pet with a certain well-meaning, slightly bumbling charm that you find completely irresistible.

About the Pet Name Digby

By Ivy Hung·May 12, 2026·1 min read

Digby is a British surname-turned-given-name that has found its sweetest second life on dogs. It reads as charming and slightly bumbling in the best way — the kind of name that belongs on a large, lovably ungainly dog who knocks things over with his tail and doesn't apologize. The Pushing Daisies connection reinforced it for a generation of TV viewers.

The TV Dog That Stuck

Digby was the name of the oversized dog in Pushing Daisies (2007-2009), the ABC series with a devoted cult following. The show's aesthetic (whimsical, slightly dark, visually lush) matched perfectly with the name's character. Owners who grew up with that show carry a clear affection for the name, and it shows in the registry.

Breed Fit: Big, Friendly, Slightly Absurd

Golden Retrievers and Labrador Retrievers are natural Digby candidates — large breeds with a characteristic enthusiasm that the name's tone matches. The British surname origin also fits well on Basset Hounds, whose ancestral home is western Europe and whose demeanor is thoroughly Digby-ish.

Counter-Reading: Sounds Exclusively Like a Dog Name

Digby has essentially no traction as a human name in the US, which means it reads as a purely pet-coded choice. That's fine — many owners prefer a name that signals pet rather than person. But if you like the British-surname style and want something with more human crossover potential, Digby as a human name does exist historically, even if it's rarely used today.

Digby