The term “fixed assets” is usually applied to buildings and furniture, but by attributing it to cats, the first animals in Mexico to receive this title, the government of López Obrador The country's treasury was forced to give them food and care for them for the rest of their livesEven after the leader left office in October.
“They have access to all areas of the palace, which is why they attend meetings and interviews and walk around in front of the cameras,” EFE quoted Jesús Arias, the palace's veterinarian, as saying. Adriana Castillo Roman, General Director of the National Palace, said: “Cats have now become a symbol of the National Palace. I would not have understood the National Palace without these cats. We have to make sure that the cats are well taken care of.” National Palace and Conservatory of Cultural Heritage.
Located in the heart of Mexico City, the Presidential Palace has long been the seat of Mexico's executive power. It was built on the former palace of Aztec Emperor Moctezuma and is currently the residence of López Obrador.
López Obrador himself said that the cats “dominate” the palace and often walk in front of it during official ceremonies.
Ironically, ancient Aztec culture did not honor cats, but rather hairless dogs, known as Xoloitzcuintle, which were buried with their owners.
Some cats are named after artists, such as the orange cat “Bowie,” named after rock star David Bowie, who visited the palace in 1997 to see the famous mural by Mexican painter Diego Rivera. Others are named after local rocks or words from the region's ancient Aztec language, such as aulin, which means “movement.”
Employees say they remember wild cats living among the cactus plants and dense bushes in the gardens half a hundred years ago, but it is not known with certainty when they appeared or how they entered the building.
A cat named Zeus, who has since died, became famous in July when he entered the president's morning news conference. The gray cat remained in front of the cameras and wandered among the reporters until palace employees took it out.
According to Adriana Castillo Roman, when López Obrador first took office in 2018, staff were secretly feeding pets in the palace.
He stated, “Some employees who love cats bring them leftovers from home, and from time to time, canned food or rice and soup.”
Palace staff collaborated with veterinarians from the National Autonomous University of Mexico to vaccinate, sterilize and neuter the cats, and built small houses and feeding stations for them around the park. They also appointed Jesus Arias to care for them on a permanent basis.
