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Compatibility
Cancer Dog and Leo Snake

The typically slow but steady progress of firstwest and secondwest towards inspiration and dedication may have a double benefit here, helping the respectful but reticent firsteast and secondeast energy develop closeness and dependability.

Western Zodiac sign, Cancer
Western Zodiac sign, Leo

Western Zodiac

Cancer and Leo

Compatibility overview

Next-door signs in Western astrology, like firstwest and secondwest, are often looked at with skepticism. Astrologers have traditionally thought of them as like real-life neighbors, who make each other nervous, and are best suited to respectful distance. In fact, however, there is considerable potential here. They may not let their guards down for a while, but these signs can ultimately become highly effective collaborators, and may share an enduring and rewarding bond.

Cancer and Leo - Relationship Horoscope

Read more about the CANCER and LEO zodiac signs...

Read more about the CANCER DOG and LEO SNAKE combined zodiac signs...

Adjacent to each other on the Western zodiac wheel, Cancer and Leo form what is known as a Semi-sextile aspect. This so-called minor influence—one of only two, with the Quincunx—has a less pronounced effect than other connections, which contributes both freedom and aimlessness to the relationship.

Certainly at the beginning, differences between these signs are likely to be more apparent than synergies. For one thing, the elements here are notoriously difficult to reconcile. Cancer is a Water sign, highly sensitive and emotionally fluid. They incline towards interior peacefulness, and are vulnerable to being overborne when crowded or pressured by others. Fire sign Leo, on the other hand, tends to be as passionate and commanding as anyone in the zodiac—fiery and resolute when strong, furious or smoldering when uneasy. Thus Cancer may find it hard to maintain a sense of themselves, as they either get riled up by Leo's abundant energy, or feel disturbed and long for greater tranquility. Leo, meanwhile, may find Cancer wayward, inconsistent, or moody, which can make Leo worry that their independent spirit is under threat, or that their ambitions for honor and social connection could be compromised.

Sustained contact, however, may produce transformative results for this pair. Cancer and Leo share highly compatible modalities. Cancer is a Cardinal sign, expressing the pure energy of beginnings, initiation, and inception. This is beautifully compatible with Leo's Fixed nature, with its emphasis on realization and real-world accomplishment. Hence, in spite of initial nervousness, these two are capable of forging highly successful collaborations.

Independence and dialogue will be essential for these two, given their differences. Yet the contrasting natures of Cancer and Leo also open up a world of creative possibilities, if they are able to work together successfully. Semi-sextile energy is also well-known for being conducive to bonds that strengthen and deepen over time. However frosty or standoffish Cancer and Leo are early in their relationship, they may ultimately forge one of the most dependable and nourishing alliances in the zodiac.

Celebrity Cancer/Leo Pairings*

*Click on the names to see both Western and Chinese zodiac matches for that pairing.

Courtney Love and Edward Norton
Courtney Love and Edward Norton (click for attribution/s)

Courtney Love (7/9/1964, Cancer Dragon), Edward Norton (8/18/1969, Leo Rooster) : The actor and musician dated between 1996 and 1999, after they appeared together in The People Versus Larry Flynt (1996). Love has continued to speak fondly about Norton and to express regret about their separation. In 2006, she said: "I should have married Norton...I left him for a bad man who stole all my money. I left Ed Norton, who was good and wonderful, for an average bad man who was in A+R. It’s upsetting."

Vin Diesel (7/18/1967, Cancer Sheep), Paloma Jimenez (8/22/1983, Leo Pig) : The actor and model have been together since 2007 and have three children. Though they have said little about their relationship in public, Diesel has said: "While I was doing [The Pacifier (2005)], it really started to bring out this desire to have a child. It took a couple years after that to find the right person and to hopefully be mature enough to be a great father which is really all you want to do." About Jimenez, he has described: "She's so stunningly beautiful, but the thing people don't realize is she's my rock, so she's so stunningly beautiful on the inside. She's just so wonderful in so many ways."

Mick Jagger and Jerry Hall
Mick Jagger and Jerry Hall (click for attribution/s)

Jerry Hall (7/2/1956, Cancer Monkey), Mick Jagger (7/26/1943, Leo Sheep) : The Rolling Stones frontman and model/actor were together from 1977 to 1999 and had four children. (An ostensible 'marriage' in Indonesia in 1990 was later annulled.) Their relationship was frequently interrupted by Jagger's infidelities. Hall described in 2003: "[Jagger is] a sick, addictive womanizer who made me very unhappy...[Now he] lives next door and doesn't have a kitchen. I'm trying to get him to get his own place -- with a kitchen...He's the most fabulous ex- husband. He's extremely generous. We never argue about the children. We adore each other."

Anjelica Huston (7/8/1951, Cancer Rabbit), John Huston (8/5/1906, Leo Horse) : The director and actor were father and daughter. Anjelica Huston has described: "[My father] was often not with my mother and often not with me, which didn't alter in any way my profound love for him...That was what he did. He was an adventurer, and he lived in a grand style, and everything around him and everything he did was a grand gesture." In her memoir, Watch Me (2014), she recalled their first collaboration, A Walk with Love and Death (1969) as, "[A] personal, commercial, and professional disappointment." Describing the success of their later film, Prizzi's Honor (1985) (for which she won an Oscar), she wrote: "For Dad and me, it was proof that if you believe in each other, are willing to risk humiliation, and put your heart on the line, miracles can happen."

Kyra Sedgwick and Kevin Bacon
Kyra Sedgwick and Kevin Bacon (click for attribution/s)

Kevin Bacon (7/8/1958, Cancer Dog), Kyra Sedgwick (8/19/1965, Leo Snake) : The two actors share one of the most enduring Hollywood relationships, having married in 1988. They have two children. Bacon has said that that when they met on the set of Lemon Sky (1988), "I found her, you know, really very beautiful and sexy and aloof. And I was just immediately in love with her and she was just immediately put off by me." Sedgwick has described: "[Bacon] was very friendly and sweet and every night after work he would say, ‘Who wants to go out to dinner?' And the whole cast would say yes except for me. And later on he told me that the only person he wanted to say yes was me and I never said yes and he was always stuck with the check, poor guy...I had no great role models in terms of healthy marriages...but [after we got together] I knew in my heart and soul that he was the right person. It was an unquestionable truth of mine. I've never had anything like that before or after."

Darren de Gallo (7/21/1974, Cancer Tiger), Amy Adams (8/20/1974, Leo Tiger) : The two actors began dating a year after they met in an acting class, and after a seven-year engagement married in 2015. They have one child. Adams has described: "[de Gallo] has sacrificed a lot. But he travels with me and helps to keep the family together, and I really do appreciate that. But I don’t value it because he’s a man doing it, I value it because he’s my partner… My husband is an extremely competent caregiver."

Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger
Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger (click for attribution/s)

Sylvester Stallone (7/6/1946, Cancer Dog), Arnold Schwarzenegger (7/30/1947, Leo Pig) : The two actors shared a high-profile rivalry as muscle-bound action stars in the 1980s and 1990s. Stallone has said that for a time the pair, "[C]ouldn't stand to be in the same galaxy...We truly, truly loathed each other." A low point, confirmed by Schwarzenegger, was when he feigned interest in Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot (1992), to lure Stallone into making a likely unsuccessful film. However, the two have since become strong friends. Stallone described in 2022: "Arnold’s very wise and he loves to talk about philosophies which have got him to where he is. It’s good to talk to a man who actually has put his money where his mouth is, and he’s achieved that. Then we start goofing around and being crazy — just laughing at the old times. I told him: 'We are the last two tyrannosaurus.' We’re the last two meat eaters, and there’s not much beef left out there. So we better enjoy each other."

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Chinese Zodiac sign, the Dog
Chinese Zodiac sign, the Snake

Chinese Zodiac

Dog and Snake

Compatibility overview

In Chinese astrology, sign combinations are often described in either glowing or disapproving terms. The match of firsteast and secondeast is more equivocal, however. There are some challenging undercurrents, which may contribute at times to nervousness or distance. Yet there is also capacity for great warmth, especially of a protective nature, which can be deeply meaningful for both signs.

Dog and Snake - Relationship Horoscope

Read more about the DOG and SNAKE zodiac signs...

Read more about the CANCER DOG and LEO SNAKE combined zodiac signs...

The four Trine Families in the Chinese zodiac work a lot like the elements in Western astrology. Between the families of the Dog (with the Tiger and Horse) and the Snake (with the Ox and Rooster), there is some quite challenging energy. Indeed, some matches among this group (e.g., the Dog and Rooster, or the Snake and Tiger) can be especially risky. The Dog and Snake, though, avoid the most troubling aspects of this energy. In fact, they can often find common ground quite easily.

The Dog is a physical sign who works hard and plays hard, and the sensual attractiveness of the Snake means there is a good chance of mutual admiration at least on the surface. More importantly, the Snake is the most famously philosophical of the signs, while the Dog prides themselves on their wholesome ethics. Hence these two can have a whale of a time debating and exploring abstract ideas about justice, religion, or love.

The lurking instability of the surrounding energy may arise in various ways. The Snake can be prideful at times and is watchful with their finances, to say the least, both of which may offend the Dog's egalitarian approach to life. The Dog's plainspokenness and lack of nuance may confound and upset the Snake, who prefers greater serenity and can be easily wounded. Above all, the Snake's instincts to charm and beguile potentially conflict with the Dog's blunter, more direct attitude. Often, the result for the Dog and Snake is a relationship that functions best with some independence or separation.

The Dog almost always has a nurturing instinct, and they can feel strongly protective of the Snake's physical and intellectual grace. The Snake, meanwhile, can find their attractiveness a cause of loneliness and vulnerability, as if people often do not appreciate them for who they are, so the earnest support of the Dog can be wonderfully reassuring.

Managed effectively, even in small doses this relationship can prove a source of invaluable warmth, tenderness, and ideological inspiration.

Celebrity Dog/Snake Pairings*

*Click on the names to see both Western and Chinese zodiac matches for that pairing.

Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw
Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw (click for attribution/s)

Kate Capshaw (11/3/1953, Scorpio Snake), Steven Spielberg (12/18/1946, Sagittarius Dog) : The director and actor have been married since 1991. Including from previous marriages and adoption, they have seven children. Capshaw has described: "I might not be comfortable pushing the limits in film the way he does, and he might not be as comfortable pushing the limits of our family. But I get to be the frontierswoman here, and he gets to be the frontiersman there...Steven and I are partners, and our life together is our production, so to speak. If I want to do something that affects that production, I want to have his support. If he doesn’t understand the piece, then I have to help explain it. Sometimes, in explaining it, I realize I don’t understand it. Then everybody’s saved a lot of work."

Brooke Shields (5/31/1965, Gemini Snake), Andre Agassi (4/29/1970, Taurus Dog) : The actor and tennis champion were a high-profile couple during the 1990s, and were married from 1997 to 1999. In his autobiography, Open, Agassi described one of their early dates: "Brooke knows exactly what she wants. She sees her dreams and doesn’t falter in describing them, even if she’s having trouble figuring out how to make them come true. Five years older than I, she’s more worldly, more aware, and yet she also gives off an airy innocence, a neediness, which makes me want to protect her."

David Bowie and Trent Reznor
David Bowie and Trent Reznor (click for attribution/s)

Trent Reznor (5/17/1965, Taurus Snake), David Bowie (1/8/1947, Capricorn Dog) : The legendary British musician and Nine Inch Nails frontman shared a meaningful collaboration and friendship. Reznor's band supported Bowie's 1995 US tour and the two collaborated again in 1997. When they reunited in 2001, Reznor had been sober for some time. Reznor described: "I wanted to thank [Bowie] in the way that he helped me. And I reluctantly went backstage, feeling weird and ashamed, like, 'Hey, I’m the guy that puked on the rug'. And again, I was met with warmth, and grace, and love. And I started to say, ‘Hey listen, I’ve been clean for …’ I don’t even think I finished the sentence; I got a big hug. And [Bowie] said, ‘I knew. I knew you’d do that. I knew you’d come out of that.’ I have goosebumps right now just thinking about it. It was another very important moment in my life."

John Cassavetes (12/9/1929, Sagittarius Snake), Seymour Cassel (1/22/1935, Aquarius Dog) : The director and actor shared a close friendship and collaborated multiple times, including on the films, Too Late Blues (1961), Faces (1968) (for which Cassel was nominated for an Oscar), Minnie and Moskowitz (1971), The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976), Opening Night (1977) and Love Streams (1984). Cassel began work on Cassevetes' first film as a director, Shadows (1959), as an unpaid crew member, but was then cast in the movie and given an executive producer credit. Cassel once described: "[Cassavetes was] the older brother I never had and the closest male friend I ever had. He was extremely influential in creating my career and guiding me."

MC Lyte and Lil Mama
MC Lyte and Lil Mama (click for attribution/s)

Lil Mama (10/4/1989, Libra Snake), MC Lyte (10/11/1970, Libra Dog) : The two rappers share a longstanding and mentoring friendship. They have collaborated multiple times, including on the songs "Ball" and "Easy", and performed together on the show, The Real (2013-2022). Discussing hardships including the death of her mother, Lil Mama described: "There were people around me that helped me and believed in me...I met my mentor MC Lyte. At one point, we were just really good friends. People would tell her, 'You know, Lil Mama really reminds me of you.' And they would tell me, 'You really remind me of MC Lyte.' And because of that connection from people comparing us all the time, we linked up. She would see how I was doing periodically. And more recently, she became a force in my life, a person who gives me direction, and a great mentor. Upon [MC Lyte’s] presence, I realized that a woman’s advice and a woman’s outlook is very important in my life."

Danica Patrick (3/25/1982, Aries Dog), Paul Hospenthal (6/5/1965, Gemini Snake) : The racecar driver and health professional were married from 2005 to 2013. Patrick described during their marriage: "Before we got married my husband asked, 'Are you ready? Have you done everything you want to do?' And I just thought, 'Am I going to throw this relationship away just to party more?' That seems boring, like a dead-end street."

Billie Eilish and Justin Bieber
Billie Eilish and Justin Bieber (click for attribution/s)

Billie Eilish (12/18/2001, Sagittarius Snake), Justin Bieber (3/1/1994, Pisces Dog) : The two superstar musicians share a sincere and supportive friendship. Eilish has described: "[Bieber's] just the sweetest baby ever. I love him. He's a good friend of mine. He has been so helpful for me, in terms of just, like, dealing with fame. He'll call me sometimes and just say stuff that makes me just feel heard and like there's somebody else that goes through the same stuff. So it's really nice to have him." Bieber has said similarly: "I don't want [Eilish] to lose it. I don't want her to go through anything I went through. I don't wish that upon anybody. If she ever needs me I'm just a call away."


Combined Relationship Horoscope

Final Words

The minor semi-Sextile aspect often needs a head start to find its feet, so it may take a while for firstwest and secondwest to progress beyond initial nervousness to the impactful and nourishing bond they are capable of. The influence of the firsteast and secondeast on the Chinese zodiac side will likely both aid and hinder this process, contributing a blend of caring admiration with respectful distance. Given sensitivity and perseverance, however, on balance the synergies here could lead to a bond that grows ever closer over time, yielding impressive impacts and an enjoyable, reliable bond.

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