At Mexico’s National Palace, the presidential palace and also the seat of Mexico’s executive branch, there are currently 19 cats living in the building full time, with many more that come and go. These cats have free rein of the palace and its gardens, even walking into meetings and making cameos on camera when press briefings and interviews are televised.
And now, the government of Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has declared these cats to be “living fixed assets”, making them the first animals in Mexico to be classified as such.
What does this mean?
While the term “fixed assets” generally refers to objects like furniture or buildings, adding the word “living” to the term means that the country’s Treasury is obligated to provide food and care for them for the rest of their lives.
The cats have names, including “Bowie”, a tabby named after rock star David Bowie (who visited the palace in 1997); “Ollin”, an ancient Aztec word meaning “movement”; “Nube”, the Spanish word for “cloud”; “Coco”; “Yema”; “Balam”; and “Zeus”, a grey cat who became famous last year when he attended the president’s morning press briefing (on camera, of course).
Zeus has since passed away, but was “getting really fat”, according to Adriana Castillo Román, general director of the National Palace and Cultural Heritage Conservancy, as a result of people around the palace giving treats. The government had to ask reporters to stop feeding Zeus because of this, and there is now a sign asking visitors to avoid feeding the cats:
English translation of sign posted on the National Palace Grounds:
The National Palace kittens eat a balanced, healthy diet and are supervised by professional veterinarians.
Avoid feeding them in different ways, it contributes to their well-being.
Let’s take care of them!
(We used Google Translate to translate the sign to English. Keep in mind that it’s the avoiding of feeding them differently that contributes to their well-being.)
Check out the full article (with a video and heartwarming pictures) on the Associated Press web site.
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