Do I Have to Capitalize Dog Breed Name?

Since I’ve discovered Grammar Girl through Oprah, I became a fan and even wrote about it. By subscribing, I receive grammar tips every week in my inbox. On last Wednesday, I read the current tips and because it concerns Chie’s species, I thought of sharing it on her blog. The following is the terse and verbatim explanation of Grammar Girl in response to the question, if dog breed name should be capitalized.

In the examples below, "English" and "Yorkshire" are derived from proper nouns--the names of places--and thus should be capitalized. On the other hand, "mastiff" is derived from the Latin "mansuétus" for "tame or mild"; "terrier" is derived from the Old French "chien terrier" for "dog of the earth, dog of the land, or dog of the ground"; and "beagle" is hypothesized to be from the Old French "beegueule" for "loudmouth" or "noisy person." Therefore, those parts of the names are derived from common nouns and should not be capitalized.

•  English mastiff
•  Yorkshire terrier
•  beagle

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Chuchie’s Background

Meet Chuchie’s Family

Chuchie and Buchie, her sister, are the third litter of IC and Pino. Her parents are a mix breed of Aspin and as the vet said, “Terrier.” They both came from the line of Jonas, one of the dogs we owned that started the unique type of breed, often making people guess. Jonas is Chuchie’s grandmother through Pino and great grandmother through IC. Confusing? To make it simple, my family and I are grateful to have them regardless of breed and duration.

What’s in a Name?

When Chuchie was born, we expected her to look like Chuckie, her deceased brother, because they both look similar in their two weeks of life. But Chuchie’s physical development is entirely different from Chuckie, except the color.

Despite of their differences, we named her after her brother, whom we will never forget. With the new puppies around and blogging in BC, my family and I are less saddened by our lost. However, we are now always reminded that we once had Chuckie’s company through Chuchie.

Appearance

• White is her dominant color.
•  One of her eyes is surrounded by black during the first month but brown appeared later. Nonetheless, this feature brought about the blog’s name.
• There are two huge black spot at her back.
• The tip of her tail is white, and the rest is black towards the hind legs.
• The coat is dense and straight.
• The huge physique resembles her dad.

Favorite Food

• ice cream
• sawdust
• spaghetti
• cookies

Dislike: bathing

Activities

• Eating variety of foods frequently and chewing shoes.
• Playing with her parents, sisters, cats, and with us.
• Sleeping in her favorite position.
• Tearing of newspapers.
• Ambushing the refrigerator.

Be informed for more stories yet to come from an adorable Aspin.