Chinese zodiac cat and rat story: 59 Photos
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The generous ox agreed to carry them across the river. However, the rat was so eager to win that he pushed the cat into the water; thus the cat never forgave the rat, and wasn't included in the race. Other variations of the story say that the rat just never told the cat about the race and did not even compete at all.
Once upon a time, there was a very clever cat that lived near a den where all the rats stayed. This cat was extremely watchful when it came to catching the rats. It was so watchful that whenever a rat showed its whiskers, the rat made sure to eat him alive. Due to this, the rats were very scared of the cat.
Legend of the Zodiac. One legend says that the Jade Emperor needed to choose 12 animals as palace guards. The Cat asked his neighbor Rat to help him sign up. Rat forgot, which is why they became mortal enemies. At the palace, Ox was first in line.
As the Ox was approaching the other side of the river, the Rat pushed the Cat into the river, then jumped off the Ox and rushed to the Jade Emperor, becoming the first in the zodiac. All the other animals made it to the Jade Emperor, while the Cat was left to drown in the river after being sabotaged by the Rat.
Not only that, but Rat had betrayed his best friend, Cat, leaving him to sleep through the entire race instead of waking him up that morning. Furious to discover he had missed the race and the chance to be part of the zodiac, the Cat swore to hate the devious rat forever, which is why, to this day, cats chase rats.