Pets named after grandmasters

[Kevin Thurlow]

The Obituary section started this discussion, but it is maybe more appropriate to continue here!

We have been offered Salov and Yusupov, and a friend of mine had a cat called Alekhine.

[Paul Cooksey]

I might be able to win this one. I think I've covered most of chess24s top 50.

I keep tropical fish, mostly Barbs. They have personalities from timid to aggressive. So I try to match them up to an appropriate player

[John Upham]

I keep tropical fish

Do you keep them in a similar way to Alexei Sayle?

I used to sell tropical (but not marine) fish to customers in my fathers' shop (The Garden Centre, Frimley Green).

Guppies were most popular along with Neon Tetra, Catfish and Dwarf Gouramis but my favourites were Siamese Fighting Fish which were delicate and expensive.

[Paul Cooksey]

Those fish from Thailand are Bettas today. Along similar lines, I did overhear an assistant in Maidenhead Aquatics (established Bourne End...) saying I don't know why they call them Pakistani Loaches, they are from the Ganges delta. But spared him my superficial knowledge of Bangladesh.

On the almost chess front, Tal was pleasingly the most aggressive of the dozens of Tiger Barbs I've had over the years (in a appropriate tank, not an undergarment)

[NickFaulks]

But spared him my superficial knowledge of Bangladesh.

He wasn't wrong, just behind the times.

In an Indian restaurant, do you order a Chicken Chennai?

[Joey Stewart]

Not my own but I know a dog called Boris which I guess counts. Since it is going to be a word you will have to say frequently (yes, all pet owners talk to their pets, no point trying to hide it) I guess the single syllable grandmaster names would be prime choice - personally I think 'So' would be kind of cute for a cat or small dog

[J T Melsom]

Joey

It only counts if the animal was named with chess in mind - there are other reasons for calling a pet Boris just ask Carrie Symonds. I had a guinea pig called Boris but although he was prolific before we neutered him, the name was inspired by Karloff rather than Spassky or Johnson.

I felt Levenfish was missing from the earlier discussion.

[Michael Farthing]

Ummm... Well I was going to boast that we have a dog called Magnus. But J T tells me it doesn't count

[J T Melsom]

If somebody owns up to a pet called Ian...

[Catherine Glynn]

One of my chess customers used to have a dog called Misha, after Tal.

[Paul Habershon]

The chess pets could be members of FIDO, but perhaps the cats would say the name is discriminatory. Gens una sumus doesn't quite cut it.