Today, 4 February 2008, is the Start of Spring day in the Chinese Astrology calendar. The Start of Spring is the first of 24 mid-solar and solar terms, which also marks the start of the new astrology year according to Chinese Astrology.

While the Lunar Year of the Rat only begins this Thursday, 7 February, the Year of the Rat according to Chinese Astrology begins today. Hence, all babies born from today are rat babies instead of pigs.