Year of the Rat

Rat parents are dedicated to their children. They encompass their little ones with love and attention and enjoy watching their offspring grow and experience the world. When their children are small they brood a great deal over them. Rats become concerned if their babies don't develop as quickly as other children. They anguish over whether or not they are raising their youngsters correctly, and will inevitably consult many books on this subject. With the mental capacity to pick things up easily, Rats tend to get agitated with people who are not quite as quick-witted as they are. No wonder this trait could lead to conflict between Rat parents and their children should any of their children be late bloomers or have any learning disabilities!

Year of the Ox

Ox people make for very protective parents. They will unselfishly work their fingers to the bone to provide a thriving, happy and secure home where their children feel safe. In return, however, the Ox mother and father demand that their youngsters be respectful and polite. In comparison with other parents, Ox people can seem a bit authoritarian, but they are conventional and believe in instilling traditional values in their children. A good education is especially important and by utilizing their educational opportunities, Ox children can make their lives and relationships with their parents a lot easier. Ox parents expect their children to listen, behave and be attentive while they are at school. A display of rebellion is the fastest way to be punished in an Ox household.

Year of the Tiger

Tiger parents are quite similar to the characters of their real life counterparts. They will walk through fire to protect their children or to defend them from others. As warm and affectionate as they are, they can become fierce and defensive when their children are at stake. Tiger parents can also be as playful as kittens, playing family games and getting great enjoyment from it. Tiger parents will become enraged if one of their children crosses the line of obedience. As open-minded and liberal as they are, they will not, under any circumstances, tolerate bad manners, or a lack of respect for other adults. They take their role as parents very seriously, and they believe in the value of a good education. Tiger parents are convinced that they themselves provide the best role models for their children.

Year of the Rabbit

Many Rabbit people have large families. Although they love their children intensely and take care of them quite affectionately, sometimes Rabbit parents can come off as looking uninterested or distant. Still, Rabbits are so protective of their children that they often appear strict and overbearing. When their children are little, Rabbit parents will dress them in cute little outfits and will insist they act politely in public. Rabbits often find themselves wrapped around their children's little fingers and will do anything for them to make them happy and to keep the peace. Rabbits despise arguing with their children, as conflict makes them quite uncomfortable, and they will avoid it at all costs, even if it means making the occasional concession.

Year of the Dragon

Because people born in the year of the Dragon are usually so busy working on furthering their careers, they usually put off having and raising children until later in life than most of the other Signs in the Chinese zodiac. Parenting doesn't come very easily to the Dragon, and children often make them decidedly uncomfortable at first. However, when Dragons do become parents, they approach it with the same enthusiasm and skill as their many other endeavors, and generally manage to make a good job of it. They are proud parents and tend to boast about the accomplishments and good looks of their children. Dragon parents must beware of driving their kids too hard, or of expecting too much from them to soon in life.

Year of the Snake

Snake parents are likely to form intimate bonds throughout their lifetime with different partners. With these relationships come children, and it is likely that the Snake will have many children and stepchildren throughout their lifetime. Regardless, Snakes are devoted and dedicated parents, willing and able to defend the livelihood and happiness of their children. Snake parents often use humor to deal with their children. Because they like peace and quiet, they generally use humor to avoid any confrontational situations that may arise. Snake parents are not known to be the most affectionate or playful parents. They do not like to roll around and get dirty with their children, nor do they enjoy loud situations, and these types of things send a Snake parent running for their inevitable private space within the house.

Year of the Horse

Horse parents are well known for their ability to do several things at the same time. They can carry on a conversation on the phone, watch T.V., fold the laundry and watch the kids, all at once. These abilities certainly come in handy when raising a child. Horse parents work very hard to make sure their children are intellectually and creatively stimulated and to make sure they depend only on themselves when problem solving or figuring something out. Horse parents feel strongly that their children should be as independent as possible and should be taught basic principles that will enable them to depend more on themselves than on anyone else. If Horse parents are not careful, this style of childrearing may case them to appear cool, unsentimental parents concerned more with helping themselves than with helping their children.

Year of the Goat

Goat parents are natural caregivers. They automatically turn on their parental instincts and take on parental responsibilities. They are family people who often have large families, and they lavish love and affection on their children. They expect their children to be polite and respectful to themselves and others. Goats generally have long-lasting, healthy relationships with their own parents. They often settle down close to where they grew up or close to their own parents so their children can be close to their grandparents. Goats often move elderly family members into their own homes to take care of them during their declining years. They encourage their children to establish and maintain close relationships with family and take great pains to stress the importance of this for the future of the family.

Year of the Monkey

Monkey parents can be more like big brothers and sisters than actual parents. They retain their childlike qualities into their adulthood and therefore find it easier to relate to their children than other people might. Monkey parents don’t experience the "generation gap" to the same extent that other families might experience it, partly because they remember what it was like to be a child. However, becoming a parent can cramp a Monkey’s style. They are not ones to stay inside helping with their children's homework on a Friday night. They would prefer to be out and about, and sometimes take their children with them if it’s appropriate. Monkey parents must find a way to reconcile their family with their social life.

Year of the Rooster

Rooster parents are quite protective of their children, always nurturing them and caring for them. Sometimes they can be a bit overprotective in trying to keep them safe. They are known to be very strict with their children, demanding respect not only for others, but their own environments and surroundings as well. Rooster parents will absolutely not tolerate bad manners and are very concerned with how they appear to their children, as well as what their children say about them to others when they're not around. Parental reputation is important to Roosters, as they would hate to be thought wanting at what they consider a very important task in life. It may be better for the Rooster parent to not worry so much, and to lighten up a little once in a while.

Year of the Dog

Dog parents are always very good at putting their family first, above all else. They are wonderfully supportive parents who take great pride in the happiness and well being of their children. They are selfless parents, content to wear the same old clothes so their children may have stylish new clothes for the new school year. Dog parents make for very stoic role models for their children and keep close bonds with their offspring well after they’ve grown up. They are experts at playing the "guilt game" on their grown children, and can usually manipulate them to serve their own ends. Dogs were made for having children and raising a family -- they are the best parents in the entire Chinese zodiac!

Year of the Pig

Pig people make for supremely devoted mothers and fathers. They are affectionate, loving, supportive and caring parents. Pig parents are definitely homebodies, preferring to stay at home with their families than to go out on the town. The Pig parent's priority is their children, and they are incredibly protective and watchful of their kids, well into adult life. Pig parents do not tolerate any sort of threat or attack against their homes and families, and will not hesitate to take drastic action against any such perceived action on the part of their enemies. They must be careful, however, not to go overboard with such protective instincts, or many bad things could be the result -- not the least of which might be a stay in jail!