pooch (n.)

"dog," 1917, American English, of unknown origin. Earlier it was a dog name, attested as such by 1901 as the name of a dog owned by Dick Craine, "the Klondike pioneer" (the article in the May 12 Buffalo Courier reports: " 'Pooch' is the Alaskan name for whisky, and although the dog is not addicted to the use of this stimulant, he is a genuine Eskimo dog, and, therefore, it is appropriate"). Harvard coach "Pooch" Donovan also was much in the news during the early years of 20c.