Meet the Cats of Mexico
Or maybe they seem to live at the restaurant you are having dinner at and come up patiently begging for a bite of your tacos with their soulful and unwavering gaze. If you are a cat person like us you’ll find yourself sneaking them a piece of food and boom you are instant friends (as long as the food doesn’t disappear).
Check out our collection of cat photos from our journeys around Mexico and feel free to add your own favorite cat story from your travels in the comments.
It’s A Mexican Thing
Seeing domestic animals walking around freely on the streets and beaches is common in Mexico. From what we can tell with our experience living in Merida for the past two years the animals live a semi free life. It is not uncommon to be greeted by cats and dogs while on a walk in this beautiful city or anywhere in this beautiful country. We have to be honest sometimes with large dogs it can be scary at first but we’ve only had one or two close calls, but in the end nothing bad has ever happened.
What was once unfamiliar to us is now something we are used to seeing all of the time. Instead of feeling afraid for our safety or the safety of the animals, we feel overjoyed to spend a little time getting to know them.
Not Just Any Street Cat
Many of the “street cats” we have met have either been feral or they seemed to belong to someone, if not the whole neighborhood. They were friendly, used to people and well-fed. The culture may be different to what we are used to back in the states where cats are much more likely to be kept indoors, as our two cats are, but it isn’t necessarily better or worse, again it is just different.
There is a different sense of ownership in Mexico. Dogs and cats may be seen sleeping curled up on the street. They may run in packs and have full families since many of them are not spayed or neutered. But this does not always mean that no one is taking care of them. What we have seen living here is that most often these animals don’t come inside or sleep in their owners beds, but they are being fed, taken to the vet when needed and of course given love and affection. While the habits of American culture to keep your pet inside, even sleeping in your bed, have been adopted by some Mexicans – from what we can tell the Mexican tradition is different.
One thing is for sure. The cats of Mexico are free and most of them seem as happy as ever.
Finding Cat Friends Wherever We Go
One of our favorite things about traveling in Mexico, or pretty much anywhere in the world are the cats we meet and befriend as we walk, roam and explore a new place. There is something very heart warming and soul satisfying to befriend cats wherever you go.
Fostering When We Can
We’ve also managed to find cats entering our lives almost magically, as if they know we love cats and decide to choose us to follow home or come up to. We’ve temporarily fostered a few cats and kittens while living here in Merida and have tried our best to take them to the vet for different things such as eye antibiotic medications, or other medical issues. We’ve managed to successfully find homes for a couple of the cats we’ve fostered, through social media posts we have made, though we wish we could have found homes for all of them.
Highlights of Two Special Mexico Cats (Our Latest ‘Unofficial’ Fosters)
Ginger came up to us when we were on a evening stroll through our neighborhood. He was ran up to right away and ended up following us home. We couldn’t get over how cute he was and he immediately attached to us. For three weeks he slept on our front porch and becauseit was monsoon season, we created a shelter for him with a camping chair and a cheap rainbow umbrella bungeed corded on. We loved having him and even took him to the vet but sadly after three weeks he disappeared. Then a couple weeks later our good friend who lives a few blocks away said he had shown up at her doorstep and she was feeding him. That’s the way things go with cats here.
If you live in Merida and are looking for a sweet companion, Ginger would make anyone the happiest pet owner. He still could use a home so if you are interested let us know.
This is our latest foster kitten. Cassie was on a walk/run through the neighborhood one evening and saw three black and white kittens peaking through the tall grass on the side of the road. Of course she instantly befriended them and they ended up following her home. Two of the kittens parted ways but the third one, little Katmandu as we call him, stayed behind and has been living on our front porch for the past couple of weeks.
He is one of the funniest and most adorable cats we’ve ever met. He loves to cuddle and rolls on his back while we rub his tummy and he kneads the air. He is also ferocious when it comes to his wet food and will even climb Nate’s pants to get a higher vantage point. We love him and plan to take him to the vet soon.
What Organization Is Helping Cats and Dogs in Merida?
If you are looking for a good organization to donate to that helps find loving homes for cats in Merida, then consider donating to Albergue Franciscano del Animal Desprotegido A.C. They are a great place to support and help both cats and dogs in the Merida area. Since COVID19 affected the Yucatan a lot of shelters have been struggling to financially survive so if you ever thought about supporting them, there is no time like the present.
Cat Gallery
Check out some more adorable cats that we have met during our travels around Mexico as well as while living in Merida!
If you would like to know more about a specific cat, we can make social media posts with individual stories for each one by request 🙂
Nuestros Gatos: Winston and Annabelle
Gotta end this with our two gatos, Winston and Annabelle, who made the big trip down from Portland, Oregon by plane and bus to be with us here in Merida, Mexico two years ago.
We’ve had them since they were a couple months old. We found them as brother and sister when we had just got engaged to be married and were living in Los Angeles, CA at the time. We went to the pound to find just one cat to adopt and ended up coming home with these two, brother and sister! They moved their heads at the same time and were so in sync together. They were obviously best friends and we couldn’t bare to separate them so we took them both! They’ve been with us every step of the way.
Okay, that is THE END. I mean Meow Meow Meow!
Frequently asked Questions:
Can you bring cats across the Mexican border?
A health certificate for dogs and cats is no longer needed to enter Mexico. Dogs and cats may be taken to over the border without health certificate documentation, they will be inspected by SENASICA upon arrival. We would suggest that you get a checkup with your local vet regardless to make sure that your pet can travel safely.
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I am passing through Cozumel, Mexico and then headed to Merida to settle down. Today I learned that a tiny 8 week old kitten, who had been clipped by a motorbike and then bitten by a dog in the same hip, had died. The owner’s daughter, an 8 year old girl, told me about this very dispassionately. I just lost it. I understand that things are far different here than in my native home of San Francisco, California, but this little kitten (Oprah) was so sweet and loving when I first met her. The little girl took to “punishing” Oprah by hitting her, hard, on the injured hip. Eventually the trauma took hold, she probably had an infection due to the bite, and the mother of the little girl refused financial help for vet bills. I am beyond sad, and. yet I know that it’s truly nothing that I could have changed. I am in a third world country and, unlike Bali (where I traveled for quite a while), animals are not considered equal. I have to get used to this, and when I do get my own cats, I will try them with the same respect, love and reverence as I’ve always had for animals since I was a child. I wish that I could contribute financially, but I’m just divorced and living only on Social Security. Thank you for all that you do. When I am financially stable (back to work), I plan to donate.