This Super Smart Dog Collar Changes How We Interact With Our Pets

What were the most popular dog breed for 2024?

This may come as a shock, but after reigning supreme for a whopping 31 years, the Labrador Retriever was ousted by the Frenchie in 2022. Since then, this breed has remained the most popular dog in the U.S. for three years running. Their smaller stature, playful temperament, and adaptable nature are likely to thank for their rising numbers across the nation.

Labrador Retrievers are still hot on Frenchies' tails, though, ranking as the second most popular dog breed. Golden Retrievers, German Shepherds, and Poodles followed in third, fourth, and fifth place, respectively. Overall, the rankings for the top five remained the same from 2023 to 2024.

However, the remaining spots within the top 10 did see some shifts. Beagles rose one spot from eighth place to seventh place, and Rottweilers also climbed up to eighth place; meanwhile, Bulldogs dropped to ninth place, and German Shorthaired Pointers stayed in tenth place.

Now, of the 201 breeds included in the list, several saw significant rises in popularity over the past year. Leading the charge is the Kerry Blue Terrier, a working dog that jumped an impressive 25 spots to number 135. The Bracco Italiano, which was only officially recognized by the AKC in 2022, followed suit, catapulting 20 spots ahead to number 132.

Then, both the German Pinscher and the American Staffordshire Terrier also advanced 18 slots each. Other notable climbs include the Bedlington Terrier and the Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever. The former rose 15 places to number 134, and the latter jumped 14 places to number 69.

Interestingly, the Saluki dropped considerably in popularity during 2024, moving 21 spots down to number 141. The Black and Tan Coonhound and the Wirehaired Vizsla witnessed significant decreases, too, at 20 spots and 17 spots, respectively.

At the same time, some breeds held their ground and maintained their 2023 popularity positions. Shih Tzus stayed at number 20, and Pomeranians and Boston Terriers continued to clock in at numbers 22 and 23.

Finally, the list's bottom 20 is comprised of rarer breeds, which have the lowest registration numbers in the U.S. The least popular dog in 2024 was the English Foxhound, falling from number 199 to number 201 from 2023 to 2024.

The first and second runners-up to last place go to the Bergamasco Sheepdog and the Grand Basset Griffon Vendeen. The former is an Italian herding dog, and the latter is a French scent hound.

What are the top 20 dog breeds for 2024?

1. French Bulldog
2. Labrador Retriever
3. Golden Retriever
4. German Shepherd
5. Poodle
6. Dachshund
7. Beagle
8. Rottweiler
9. Bulldog
10. German Shorthaired Pointer
11. Yorkshire Terrier
12. Australian Shepherd
13. Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
14. Cane Corso
15. Pembroke Welsh Corgi
16. Doberman Pinscher
17. Boxer
18. Miniature Schnauzer
19. Bernese Mountain Dog
20. Shih Tzu

1. Scooter

"Scooter because when they got him, he would drag his [behind] on rugs because he had worms," one user revealed.

2. Cat

"I've never been fond of highly normal-named dogs (David, Katie, Tom, Sarah, etc). But then there are also people like my [derpy] old roommate who, for some special reason, named his dog Cat," another user said.

3. Hashtag

"My sister-in-law named her dog Hashtag. Not even kidding. She thought it was trendy and unique," shared a user.

4. Joachim (Multiple Times)

"My husband's family likes to get the same types of dogs and give that dog the same name as the dog before it. They've had generations of Shih Tzus named Joachim starting in, like, the 1950s, and there was also a series of Portugues water dog duos all named the same thing," one user explained.

5. Kaiser Koenig der Schnitzel Fritz

"I adopted a dachshund from a lady who was getting divorced and was going to submit him. His name was Kaiser Koenig der Schnitzel Fritz... We just called him Fritz," recalled another user.

6. Dave

"A colleague called her dog Dave. When I started at the job, I couldn't figure out who the [heck] she was talking about when she 'took Dave for a walk.' I was too scared to ask who Dave was," detailed a user.

7. Girl & Boy (But In Reverse)

"There was this old lady that would take her two chihuahuas to the dog park. I'd also see them occasionally on walks around the neighborhood. They were both white and looked very similar," one user remembered.

"The male dog was named Girl, and the female dog was named Boy. They were nasty little dogs. Girl peed on my shoes once, too."

8. Chair

"I once heard someone name their dog Chair. The poor pup must have been so confused," added a user.

9. Aye

"My brother named his dog Aye because he wouldn't respond to anything else except 'Aye!' Come to find out, the former owners were Haitian, and the dog understood more Creole than English," a user said.

"They still got the dog. He's 15 years old, and my brother's family has learned some Creole phrases for him. He understands English now, but his name still remains Aye."

10. Joshua

"My dad never had a son to name him Joshua, so he named our dog Joshua," joked a final user.

Is Meryl Streep in the Narnia cast?

Meryl Streep is reportedly in talks to voice Aslan in Greta Gerwig's Narnia movies. The casting rumor first broke on March 31, leading some people to wonder if it was an early April Fool's Day joke, until Deadlineconfirmed the rumor on April 3. Fans of the book have called the choice everything from "interesting" to "cruel," and the conversation revolves around one particular question: are they making Aslan female?

A lot of Narnia fans were taken aback by the rumor about Meryl Streep because of the fact Aslan is an allegory for Jesus (referred to in the Bible as the Lion of Judah) — especially since Aslan's mane is such an integral part of the series, and lioness' typically don't have manes.

When the White Witch sacrifices Aslan on the Stone Table in The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, she shaves off his mane in an attempt to shame him and strip away his identity as King of Narnia. Lucy Pevensie hiding her face in his mane in Prince Caspian plays a huge role in bolstering her courage and faith, and the mane even comes into play during The Last Battle before (spoiler alert) Narnia gets destroyed.

'Narnia' fans have a lot of opinions about a female Aslan.

The most iconic visual of the Narnia series, arguably more than the wardrobe or the lamppost, is Aslan's mane. "If it’s true that Aslan has been changed to a female lion in the upcoming film, it’s deeply troubling that the filmmakers would make the choice to visually distance itself from The Chronicles of Narnia as it has always been known to its fans and the public imagination," one Narnia fan wrote on NarniaWeb. "It would be hard to look at a decision like that and not think that they were deliberately disassociating from the Narnia canon."

Another fan on NarniaWeb points out that having Meryl potentially voice a male Aslan "would be a fine way to convey the genderless nature of the soul. Aslan transcends all of that and was never bound by the idea of duality in the way that the ‘fallen’ believe they are."

@bereckerwentviral for his claim that fans who are upset about the casting simply "hate women" (yes, some of the backlash to Meryl's casting rumor has been atrocious). "I would like to officially say that if I die, I would be more than honored if Meryl Streep were to play me in my biopic, she’s the greatest to ever do it," he said in the comments.

"Meryl was hired based on merit. She’s the best," another Instagram user said in the comments.

However, Netflix hasn't confirmed Meryl Streep as Aslan.

Let the record show that, as of writing this story on April 7, Netflix hasn't actually confirmed anything about the movie outside Greta as director and Atonement cinematographer Seamus McGarvey as Director of Photography. Whether the film is a The Magician's Nephew adaptation, whether Daniel Craig is playing Uncle Andrew, and whether Meryl Streep is actually voicing Aslan are speculation at this point.

As one viral tweet puts it, "Increasingly convinced Greta either has no idea what she wants to do with this movie or has a vision so incredible nobody else can see it." Stay tuned for official casting announcements!