The name was a reference to the famed founder of modern nursing, Florence Nightingale, and Florence the dog’s role as a healer, after Carter-Hall’s beloved black cavoodle Pebbles died in 2020.
“For healing a heart. And she does that, that’s who she is, she’s so loving and so kind. She worked her way into our hearts and gently and slowly made things feel better after losing Pebbles.”
Carter-Hall said she didn’t know of any other creature with “as much grace as a dog”.
“They are so forgiving and they don’t hold grudges. They are the most amazing creatures that I know.”
She said that was evidenced when Pebbles died.
“She was actually hit by a family member... the family member raced up to see if she was ok, and she was dying, and she looked at [them] and she wagged her tail and then died.
“I don’t know any other creature that could find that forgiveness and grace, that when you’ve just hit them with your car and they’re dying, they look at you with love, and wag their tail. That is mind-blowing. It’s absolutely incredible.
Pebbles, who died in 2020. Photo / Supplied
“When [a higher power] designed the dog they designed a friend that’s a phenomenal friend. Incredible heart.”
Molly’s name was also significant. Carter-Hall spied her on offer in Tauranga and fell in love. The name Molly is an Irish name that means “star of the sea”, nodding to the 13-year-old cavoodle’s seaside origins.
Carter-Hall’s first dog, at age 13, was a black Labrador called Samantha - a name she later went on to use again with one of her daughters.
She said she registered her dogs because she wanted to do “everything I can to keep them safe”.
“They’re family, they’re my best friends - if I register them, I know that they’ve a better chance of being found if they are lost.”
Rotorua Lakes Council animal control team lead Arana Waaka-Stockman said her team provided a “wide range of services that help to keep the Rotorua community safe”, and dog registration fees helped cover the costs of those.
“Having your details registered with the council also helps if your dog ever goes missing or is found roaming.”
According to the council data, the top three dog names - Bella, Max and Poppy - had not changed since 2019, although the number of registered “Bellas” dropped from 163 to 156.
The name “Jess” had also been toppled from its fourth place by “Buddy”. Jess was fourth in the pack in 2019 but fell to 10th in 2022.
The overall number of dogs registered had also increased since 2019 when the total was 11,662.
There was no data on the dogs’ sexes, but there were more “Boys” (25) than “Girls” (24) and more “Tama” (35) than “Hine” (1).
Unique one-of-a-kinds included Bootie Girl, Half Pint, Little Tum, Bongo McChuckles, Gentleman Jack, Kepler Shark Scarface Bear and Fiona Fluffy Fox, as well as Honey Pup, Hiccup and Chewwybarker.
