Top Pet Names of 2011

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Bella and Kitty emerge as popular monikers.

Dog owners may be trending towards "human" names such as Bella and Max, but many cat owners are sticking with traditional names such as Kitty and Tiger, according to Banfield Pet Hospital's top pet names of 2011, released last month.

Banfield, the world's largest veterinary practice, culled their list of patient names from their extensive database, including over 780 hospitals across the country. And the results may be surprising to some fans of unusual pet names.

Claiming the top spot among dogs was the name Bella, possibly owing to the success of the Twilight series of books and movies. And cat owners warmed to the name as well, making it the #3 choice among pet parents of felines.

Interestingly, Bella and Isabella have also made appearances on top-ten lists of baby names, such as the one recently released by BabyCenter. But while Charlie fell in popularity among baby boy names, it remains a solid choice for pets, reaching #9 for dogs and #11 for cats.

And the name Max remains popular among both species, claiming the #2 spot among canines and the #6 spot among their feline friends. Other human-sounding names reached prominent spots on both lists, such as Chloe, which made #11 on the Top Dog list and #9 on the list of popular cat names.

So, drumroll please.... here is Banfield's list of the top 20 pet names for dogs and cats in 2011:

Top 20 Dog Names

1. Bella

2. Max

3. Buddy

4. Daisy

5. Bailey

6. Lucy

7. Molly

8. Coco

9. Charlie

10. Rocky

11. Chloe

12. Maggie

13. Sadie

14. Princess

15. Sophie

16. Lucky

17. Roxy

18. Jack

19. Lola

20. Harley

Top 20 Cat Names

1. Kitty

2. Tiger

3. Bella

4. Kitten

5. Smokey

6. Max

7. Tigger

8. Shadow

9. Chloe

10. Lucy

11. Charlie

12. Oreo

13. Baby

14. Lucky

15. Buddy

16. Oliver

17. Jack

18. Simba

19. Princess

20. Angel

What do you think of these pet names? Do you see your four-legged friend's name on this list? Tell us below!