Wiley ranks at #871 with 136 entries, registered male. The name is an English surname-as-given-name with two distinct lineages: the place-name Wylie or Wiley in England, and the adjective wily meaning crafty or cunning. On a pet registry Wiley functions as the playfully-mischievous male pet pick, often chosen for dogs who escape, dig, or scheme.
The Wile E. Coyote lineage
For a slice of registry Wileys, the conscious reference is Wile E. Coyote from Looney Tunes, the name carrying the cartoon coyote's perpetual schemer energy. The cohort overlaps with Border Collies, Australian Shepherds, and herding mixes — breeds whose intelligence and problem-solving habits earn the name honestly.
Sound and broader register
Two syllables, front-stressed (WHY-lee), with the long open WHY-vowel and bouncy diminutive ending. Excellent recall shape. The name also clusters with Scout, Ranger, and Cooper in the outdoorsy-Americana male pet register. Many Wileys are working-line dogs in rural households.
The counter-reading
The honest consideration: a name that means cunning or crafty is also a name that signals "this dog is going to be hard to manage." Some households embrace that and others wish they had picked something less prophetic. The human Wiley page shows mid-tier SSA presence with steady use through the 2010s-2020s.