The dog was honored by the Chinese for thousands of years as one of 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac. People born under this sign are said to possess such character traits as loyalty, trustworthiness, and kindness, qualities often associated with the dog. For instance, there is a Chinese saying which highlights the faithfulness of the dog, ‘狗不嫌家贫，儿不嫌母丑’, which translates as ‘a dog would not mind if its master is poor, a son would not mind if his mother is ugly.’

The dog statue in the Kowloon Walled City Park in Kowloon City, Hong Kong one of the 12 Chinese Zodiac signs.

The respect for dogs is perhaps more pronounced in the mythologies of China’s ethnic groups. For instance, the Yao and She ethnic groups worship a dog by the name of Panhu as their ancestor. According to one of their myths, Panhu belonged to the legendary Emperor Ku. Once, when the emperor got into trouble during an invasion, Panhu slew the enemy general, and brought his head back. As a reward, Panhu was given the emperor’s daughter as his wife. The dog carried the princess to the mountains in southern China, where they had many children. Thus, the Yao and She ethnic groups have a taboo against eating dog meat.