being able to finally name pets (without being a hunter) is something i thoroughly enjoy. as usual, blizzard has a secret list of words you cannot use (two secret lists, actually - one for "reserved" words and one for "offensive" words). the illustrious pike pointed me toward the petopia forums where there is a list of names people have determined to be illegal, but i'm hoping to delve deeper and see just how far i can push the envelope, because i'm weird that way. after last night's research, i can confirm the following:
"the" is a reserved word, which is a total rip-off given that some of the npc tamers use it in their pets' names.
most military ranks are restricted, but standard abbreviations are not. for example "adm bigs" and "sgt dingles".
"duke", like most ranks of nobility, is out. "duck", however, is fine. since there are currently no actual duck pets, i picked my nether ray fry to be the "duck of death", and "iron duck" will probably go to my sea gull.
more to follow, as my brain comes up with pointless things to try.