Doc

Doc is an American nickname for doctor — from the Latin docere meaning to teach — used informally for physicians, veterinarians, and anyone with an advanced degree or air of authority. It carries a frontier, Old West quality: the town doctor, always calm under pressure, always the one people turn to. For a pet, it suggests someone who seems to know more than they let on.

Doc is a great name for a pet who has that slightly knowing, observational quality — the dog who watches everything with calm intelligence, the cat who seems to be running quiet diagnostics on the household at all times. It has an American vintage charm that feels both nostalgic and completely unpretentious. Doc is also wonderfully short for everyday use, and it commands a certain immediate respect that longer names sometimes take years to earn. One of the seven dwarves, too, for anyone keeping track.