Tiger ranks #224 with 490 entries and is one of the most visually-driven pet names in the entire chart. Owners pick Tiger for one of two reasons: the pet has tabby stripes, or the pet has fierce energy that the owner wants to acknowledge with a bold name. The two motivations split the Tiger population almost evenly.
The visual-stripes route
Orange tabby cats and brindle-coated dogs receive a disproportionate share of Tiger names. The pattern is visible at first sight, and the name names what the eye already sees. This is one of the most common naming logics across global pet traditions — describe the obvious — and Tiger is the canonical example.
One counter-reading: the temperament-route Tigers (no stripes, but bold personality) are statistically just as common, and they are often the small dogs whose owners want a big-name laugh. A six-pound Yorkie named Tiger is a deliberate joke that owners enjoy explaining.
The Tiger Woods era
Tiger Woods (born 1975, professional since 1996) gave the name a sustained celebrity cultural footprint that lasted roughly two decades. Pet Tigers in the late 1990s and 2000s sometimes traced to him. The reference has faded as Woods's career has moved past its peak, leaving the visual-stripes and bold-temperament routes as the dominant motivations.
Sound and adjacent picks
Two syllables (TY-gur), front-stressed, with a strong T-opener and a rolling R-finish. Recall is excellent. Owners cross-shopping bold animal-names often browse Bear and Leo alongside Tiger. The full animal-name cluster sits at pet-names. Gender skew is heavily male, and the name pairs especially well with cats overall, where the visual-stripes route is most reliable and the gender register matters least.