What is Morty's dog called before renaming himself Snowball?

Morty's dog is called Snuffles before he renames himself Snowball. In “Lawnmower Dog,” Rick gives the Smith family dog an intelligence-enhancing helmet after Jerry complains that the pet cannot understand him. The treatment works far too well, turning Snuffles into a highly intelligent being who resents humanity's treatment of dogs.

Snuffles soon leads a canine uprising, forces humans into submission, and adopts the grander name Snowball. The name change is therefore part of his transformation, not the dog's original identity. A common mix-up is remembering only Snowball, because that is the name he uses during most of the episode.

The episode is the second installment of the first season and combines its dog-rebellion plot with Morty's dream adventure involving Rick's mind-altering device. Snowball's storyline also parodies science-fiction stories about animals gaining human-level intelligence and turning against their owners. His new name reflects both his elevated self-image and the episode's joke about revolutionary rebranding.