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Of course, there's a universal saying that a dog is man's best friend, yet they hold a particular special meaning for the Chinese, symbolizing wealth and good luck ¨C in fact generally helping people to avoid leading a dog's life. Let's join our reporter ¡ for a look at this Year of the Dog, and Chinese folklore's high regard for the canine.
The dog is the eleventh in the 12-lunar-year cycle of animal signs. Altogether the Chinese almanac includes twelve annual animal signs, in the order of rat, buffalo, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig. Thus, last year was that of the Rooster, while after this Year of the Dog we will move on to the Pig. 
One may well wonder why the dog comes 11th in this cycle, or indeed, if there is any logic at all to this system. Hailing from the Beijing Folk Artists Association, folk culture expert Wang Zuoji gives an interesting but rather complicated explanation.
"The positions of these animals in the cycle are decided by their number of claws and their natural habits. So, animals with an odd number of claws on each paw are assigned to odd sequences in the cycle. For example, the rat comes first because they're very special - they've got four claws on their forepaws and five on their rear paws, while they're at their most active at night from 11 to 1 o'clock, giving them first place in the cycle. After that, the ox follows. The dog comes in at 11th because they've got five claws on each paw."
We have no way of knowing when these animal year signs were first adopted. However, it's generally agreed by archeologists that the concept originated in the Weihe river region, itself found in the central province of Shanxi. Ancient books show that this region has legends for the cycle¡¯s eleven real animals, while the exception is the purely legendary dragon.
Yet no matter when these animal years first appeared, the worship of the dog in China stretches all the way back to the Neolithic age, when the dog's image first began to appear. Here's Vice Secretary General of the China Folk Artists Association, Professor Duan Baolin, from Beijing University.
"Totem worship of the dog has existed since ancient times. Today, among the She ethnicity in Fujian and Zhejiang provinces, dogs are worshiped as ancestors. Local myth records that during ancient times, the She people faced fierce invaders, and the king promised that whoever could fend off these foes would be awarded with his daughter's hand in marriage. In fact, his own dragon-dog disposed of the enemy and married the princess. This dog then turned into a handsome young man, while the descendents of this marriage became the She people of today. Similar totem worship also takes place among the Miao and Yao ethnicities."
In fact, there are many legends indicating the dog's long-held esteem in Chinese society. Here's folk culture expert Wang Zuoji again.
"Another legend associated with dogs is about Fu Xi, one of man's ancestors. Fuxi has a man's body but a dog's head. Actually, the Chinese character for his name "Fu" is made up of two words, human being and dog. Today in the Huaiyang region of Henan province, believed to be the place where Fuxi set up his capital, there're a kind of toy dog called Ni Ni Gou, which is made of mud and whose design has a history of several thousand years. It's really a kind of totem worship from ancient times; even in present day China, people give this toy as a valuable gift to relatives or friends, which will fend off bad luck and demons."
In ancient China, there's also the legend about a celestial dog which periodically eats the Sun and the Moon. This tale recounts how the Sun was once wounded and people sent the celestial dog to help it, promising a reward of 25 kilos of rice for every year after. Unfortunately, after the dog had fulfilled its mission, man forget his promise, and the dog would eat either the Sun or the Moon when it got too hungry, thereby causing eclipses to occur.
But of course, dogs are loved by Chinese people not only because of these legends, but also for their very evident virtues. Folk culture expert Wang Zuoji tells of the eight virtues of dogs.
"Dogs are loyal to their owners, and never desert them, whether be they rich or poor. They are brave and fierce, charging at man's order no matter how dangerous their enemies may seem. They are diligent, understanding, kind and handsome to name just a few more virtues. There're also a lot of stories about dogs who save their owners' lives, the most famous being that of Nuerhachi, the founder of China's last dynasty. Chased by enemy soldiers, Nuerhachi fell off a cliff and his clothes also caught on fire. His dog then jumped into the water and rolled over him time and again until the fire was put out. Nuerhachi was saved but the dog died as a result of tiredness and burns."
 Virtues aside, Chinese people also love dogs and the year of the dog for a more materialistic reason. Simply put, dogs have for a long time been associated with wealth and good luck. Wang Zuoji gives us some examples.
"There are many sayings which carry the belief that the year of the dog signifies the coming of a peaceful and prosperous age. Equally, a dog's unexpected arrival will make the recipient family rich and their harvest non-diminishable for that year. There's also the saying 'If the Black dragon comes over, then gold and silver will pile up in your room,' where black dragon is actually another name for the dog."
Continuing this theme, even the dog's bark is considered a wealthy sign, since its Chinese onomatopoeia is similar to the Chinese word "prosperous". Admittedly, there are also some negative phrases about dogs, such as "a dog barking bravely with powerful backing" or "Dogs and fowls can never be at peace." However, people generously point to the first as another example of the keen relationship between man and dog, while the latter is simply regarded as a natural conflict between animals.
What's more, Wang Zuoji says that Chinese people should love this particular year of the dog even more than usual.
"One thing very special about this year of dog is that we're going to have two "Spring Beginnings" within one year, with one Spring starting at the year's opening and another at the year's end. According to folk belief, two "Spring Beginnings" in the year of the dog will turn yellow dirt into gold. This symbolizes great auspiciousness and good harvest for this year, with ideal weather for the growing of crops."
Well, well, as man's best friends and harbingers of good luck, the dogs of China should be content with their social status. And while we are happy these animals will fare especially well during their year of 2006, we also congratulate those people who have been born or who about to be born in the year of the dog. After all, it's also a traditional belief that people born in the year of the dog will be well-provided for throughout their lives, and will very rarely face poverty.
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Producer: Shen Min