6 Interesting Types of Traditional Tea Pets To Collect

Tea pets are great companions for drinking your tea with.

Even if you have the most luxurious teapots and gaiwans, you’re set will not be complete without a tea pet!

They are cute and humorous small-sized objects which represent good luck and prosperity. The most popular tea pets are the lion tea pet, pig tea pet, monkey tea pet, elephant tea pet, turtle tea pet, Chinese cabbage, carp tea pet, dragon tea pet, and wise monkeys, to name just a few.

We've created a list of the different types of traditional and the best tea pets including zodiac tea pets, religious tea pets, and humorous tea pets. Some change color, some squirt water, and all are very cute.

Plus, they require less work than an actual pet!

What is the Best Tea Pet?

1. Pee Pee Boy – Most Popular
   • Choice of colors
   • One of the best-selling in China
   • Humorous tea pet
     
     
2. Lucky Toad – Best Color-Changing
   • Changes color
   • Comes in different designs
   • Symbolizes prosperity and wealth
     
     
3. Happy Buddha – Best Religious
   • Happy Buddha with belly showing
   • Made with purple clay
   • Can rub his belly for good luck
     
     
4. Dragon – Best Zodiac Creature
   • Four different styles
   • Can put a bowl on its tail
   • Handmade from purple clay Yixing Zisha and red mud
     
     
5. Frog – Best Animated
   • Squirts water
   • Made from Yixing Zisha clay
   • Two frogs on a stone
     
     
6. Ceramic Pig Tea Pets – Cutest Tea Pet
   • 4 cute pig tea pets for the price of one
   • Comes with a feeder and 3 coins
   • Made of purple clay

1. Pee Pee Boy

Most Popular

Yes, a pee pee boy. And it’s exactly how it sounds. This humorous and rather naughty tea pet is one of the biggest selling tea pets in China.

It’s the figure of a little boy holding his nether regions. The tea is usually poured on his head and comes out his said nether regions as if he is peeing.

It is similar to a famous statue in Brussels called Manneken Pis or peeing boy. Just like the pee pee boy, the statue is of a little boy having a wee and water comes out. I’m not quite sure what is the fascination with a boy peeing, but it makes a popular tea pet.

Scientists are even fascinated with this tea pet and did a study to explore the thermodynamics of the pee pee boy (1). The study revealed that when hot water is poured over his head, the air inside expands causing pressure to build. After a few seconds, this pressure forces a stream of water out. They found the hotter the water, the more expansion and the farther the stream will go.

That certainly could entertain you for a while, experimenting with different temperatures of water.

Perhaps make a game out of it at your next afternoon tea party.

This particular pee pee boy is a little buddha monk who is closing his eyes. He has a backpack where you pour the tea, and it comes out as pee. 

There is a choice of blue or red and it’s made from the typical Yixing clay to match your gongfu tea set.

It measures 4.9 x 3.2 x 2.3 inches and weighs 5.6 ounces. There is a one-dollar difference between the two colors for some reason.

2. Lucky Golden Toad

Best Color-changing

A toad may not seem like a creature you’d want to sit down to tea with (apart from maybe Mr. Toad from The Wind and The Willows). But the three-legged golden toad is popular in Chinese traditional culture.

Since ancient times, the toad has been worshipped by the Chinese (2). It is a totem of longevity and wealth and features throughout their culture.

Aogaeru is a frog spirit in Spirited Away, a popular anime film. He works in the bathhouse and sneaks back in at night to try to find more gold. This might explain why this particular toad has coins on his back and also because toads bring luck to businesses. 

Hopefully, this toad tea pet won’t end up like Aogaeru in Spirited Away though, who is swiftly eaten.

The three-legged toad is also a popular tea pet because of the Chinese folklore story of Liu Hai (3).

The pattern on the toad resembles coins (just like this tea pet) and he was thought to be able to spit gold coins out of his mouth. The three-legged toad helps Liu Hai get lots of gold coins, maybe he’ll get you some too.

This lucky golden toad tea pet has a coin in his mouth (unfortunately not real gold, so, not a lot of help to you) but you can still enjoy tea with him!

This toad changes color from a dark color to golden and has gems for his eyes. The gradual color change is satisfying to watch and is enjoyable every single time.

Slowly, tea pets will change color because of the tea and their rough texture that lets them absorb the moisture, so your tea pet will change over time which always makes using them fun. 

There is a choice of designs and colors, red jade or green jade. This toad is molded from Yixing purple clay and resin. He measures 4.3 x 3.3 x 2.0 inches.

Lucky Golden Toad

Check Price on Amazon

Check Price on Etsy

3. Happy Buddha

Best Religious

Everyone should be familiar with the figure of Buddha. Buddhas aren’t just seen as lucky tea pets, but they are carried around as lucky charms and often used as decorations throughout the world.

Buddha is an East and South Asian deity, who is a cheerful monk with a large belly.

Legend states if you rub Buddha’s belly it will bring you luck, wealth, and prosperity (4).

So, not only will this tea pet be a cheerful companion to have tea with, but you can also rub his belly for even more luck.

This happy Maitreya buddha tea pet has his belly showing and his arms outstretched as if he’s about to give you a hug. He has a red robe with little feet sticking out.

This buddha tea pet is made from purple clay which absorbs the tea’s scent over time. It is 3.25 inches and weighs 4.9 ounces.

Happy Buddha

Check Price on Amazon

Check Price on Etsy

4. Dragon

Best Zodiac Creature

Who doesn’t love a dragon? Ok, maybe not the ones from Game of Thrones. They quite liked eating people and we don’t want that.  

Dragons are a feature in many fantasy novels and films. They’re also important in Chinese culture.

A Chinese dragon breaths clouds, not fire. A lot safer than Daenerys dragons (5).

The dragon is one of the twelve zodiac signs and dates back at least 3000BCE. Dragons represent prosperity in business, a good harvest, good fortune, health, and are protective tokens (which makes sense since they’re pretty scary).

This tea pet is a mermaid dragon, a cross between a fish and a dragon. It has the head and claws of a dragon with the body and tail of a fish.

It has a playful face with an open mouth and its tail in the air. There are four different styles to choose from. A dark brown (made of purple clay) with gold markings on its back, horns, claws, and gold at the side of its mouth. There’s one without the gold, one that’s a red color with gold, and a red color without gold.

This tea pet dragon doesn't just look pretty. It’s actually multi-functional! A bowl can be placed in its tail and it’s handmade from purple clay and red mud. It measures 5.3 x 4.1 x 3.9 inches.

Dragon

Check Price on Amazon

Check Price on Etsy

5. Frog

Best Animated

Frogs are also seen as good omens in Chinese culture. They are associated with healing and good fortune in business. They also ate insects which helped the ancient farming society, which is why they probably made it into the good books of Chinese culture.

The frog is seen mostly as a sign of prosperity and in Feng Shui, frogs are recognized as a sign of affluence.

With this lucky frog tea pet, you get two frogs for the price of one!

There are two frogs on a stone and they both spray water out of their mouths. Just like the pee pee boy, the hot air expands inside and jets out. The water sprays upwards as if they’re trying to knock the other one off the stone. The hotter the water, the higher the frogs will spit their jets of water. 

Made from Yixing Zisha clay, this tea pet measures 2.56 x 1.77 x 1.97 inches.

Frog

Check Price on Amazon

Check Price on Etsy

6. Ceramic Pig Tea Pets

Cutest Tea Pet

These are probably the cutest tea pets on this list unless you find toads and dragons cute!

This cute pig tea pet set comes with four little pig tea pets - papa and mama pigs, as well as two piglets!

How adorable!

The pig is the 12th sign of the Chinese zodiac, and it represents good luck, fortune and wealth, as well as hard work and honesty.

This set also comes with a pig feeder and three coins for extra good luck!

To make your pig pets happy, simply pour your most expensive oolong tea over them and fill the feeder - they are known to be quite spoiled!

As they are made of purple clay, they will absorb the tea’s aroma over time, making them unique tea companions.

This tea pet measures 4.6 x 1.5 inches - so it’s quite small. It’s also a good value purchase as you get 4 pig tea pets, a feeder, and three coins!

Ceramic Pig Tea Pets

Check Price on Amazon

Check Price on Etsy

What are Tea Pets?

A tea pet is a clay figurine, traditionally made of clay, that accompanies you when you drink tea. The tea or water can be poured over them, which can change their color over time.

If they are made of Yixing Clay, they also absorb the tea’s aroma over time and thus develop their own unique character based on the types of tea your drink.

Tea pets, called Cha Chong in Chinese, were thought by some to come alive when you pour tea over them because they have a soul.

Tea pets, previously called tea lovers’ pets, were usually figures from Chinese historical or mythical characters, but more recent tea pet designs have included fun and risqué versions.

For more details visit our post explaining in detail what tea pets are.

What is the purpose of tea pets?

The original reason for tea pets was to help you see if the water temperature was right to pour your tea.

They were also used to accompany the tea masters during the Gong Fu tea ceremony. In Chinese history were said to symbolize good luck, fortune, and happiness (6).

What’s the origin of tea pets?

Tea pets originated from the Yuan dynasty in China between 1206 AD and 1368 AD. They were first created in Yixing, Jiangsu province, China. Traditional models are still made with Yixing clay (the same clay used to make their tea pots).

But hollow ceramic figures dating back to the Tang dynasty between 618 to 906 CE were possibly used as thermometers. This could have been the very beginning of using tea pets.

Why do you pour tea over tea pets?

The reason for pouring water over your tea pet was to check the temperature of the water.

If the tea pet didn’t crack when the hot water was poured over it, then the tea was ready to be poured out.

They are also said to come alive when you pour tea on them and they make a cute companion for you to sit with when you’re drinking your tea. Plus, they may bring you good luck.

What are tea pets made from?

Tea pets are made from clay, just like the clay teapots that were used in China.

They are usually made from Yixing or Zisha clay, the region they were first created.

Yixing clay comes in three colors: green clay, red clay, and purple clay.

The clay is unglazed to keep the surface rough, so it will absorb the tea.

Sometimes a mix of clay will be used to produce different colors and densities, but this isn’t usual.

Why use tea pets?

They’re cute. It’s also fun if you're hosting for some tea enthusiasts or even to enjoy by yourself. The ritual of brewing your tea and sharing it with your tea pet is relaxing.

Plus, some blow bubbles, or squirt which makes it fun.

How to use tea pets?

Raising tea pets is a serious business in Chinese tea culture and there are some rules.

• Your tea pet needs to be placed on a slotted wooden tea tray or tea table, which will drain away the liquid.
  
  
• You can pour hot water on them before steeping your tea or pour the leftover tea on them.
  
  
• Pouring tea on them will help change their color after a while and will give them the aroma of your tea whether black tea, green tea, calming tea or any other kind.
  
  
• You can also use a tea brush to brush the water evenly over them. Even if you don’t use a brush, you must pour the liquid over your tea pet evenly to ensure they don’t get thirsty.
  
  
• They are a companion for you while you drink your tea or can be part of a tea ceremony for guests.
  
  
• You can soak your tea pet in cold water for 15 to 20 minutes after using.
  
  
• You must keep your tea pet facing you. Otherwise, if they do come alive, you might have a very angry tea pet to deal with.

Frequently Asked Questions

Bottom Line on Tea Pets

Tea pets are cute. What other reason do you need to own one? They're the perfect gift for yourself or any other tea lover you know. Why not get several tea pets to add to your collection of tea accessories such as tea infusers, tea cups, and teapots?

Plus you could have a tea party with other tea lovers, including your pets…that is, tea pets!

They make the ritual of making tea more interesting and relaxing, and they might even bring you wealth, health, and prosperity. And who couldn’t use a little of that?

Once you get one, tea time will never be the same without your tea pet.