French government brings in cats to fight the rats
The Local France - [email protected]
Published: 20 Dec, 2017 CET.
Updated: Wed 20 Dec 2017 17:42 CET
The French government has welcomed cats into its prestigious ministries in Paris in a bid to quell a rat infestation.
Parisians are no strangers to their close neighbours, the rats.
But now it seems these pesky rodents are getting above their station and are invading government ministries in the French capital.
The Interior Ministry in Place Beauvau in Paris next to the president's Elysee Palace is among those affected, with the hallways and the apartment of Jacqueline Gourault, the minister’s secretary, also playing host to the clever critters.
In response Gourault has installed rat traps all over her room, according to French media reports.
But she isn't alone.
The secretary to the prime minister, Christophe Castaner, who is also suffering from the rat infestation, has resorted to bringing in cats to fight them off.
These feline allies have been named Noé and Nomi after "Nominoe" the first king of Brittany, in honour of the Breton foreign affairs minister Jean-Yves Le Drian.
Rats are believed to easily outnumber Parisians in the French capital and their numbers are increasing.
The city's rodents were given an image overhaul in 2007 in the hit animated film "Ratatouille" which depicted them cooking in a famous restaurant.
Nevertheless in December 2016, Paris officials announced a major crackdown on rats including the closure of parks and gardens around the City of Light.
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Parisians are no strangers to their close neighbours, the rats.
But now it seems these pesky rodents are getting above their station and are invading government ministries in the French capital.
The Interior Ministry in Place Beauvau in Paris next to the president's Elysee Palace is among those affected, with the hallways and the apartment of Jacqueline Gourault, the minister’s secretary, also playing host to the clever critters.
In response Gourault has installed rat traps all over her room, according to French media reports.
But she isn't alone.
The secretary to the prime minister, Christophe Castaner, who is also suffering from the rat infestation, has resorted to bringing in cats to fight them off.
These feline allies have been named Noé and Nomi after "Nominoe" the first king of Brittany, in honour of the Breton foreign affairs minister Jean-Yves Le Drian.
Rats are believed to easily outnumber Parisians in the French capital and their numbers are increasing.
The city's rodents were given an image overhaul in 2007 in the hit animated film "Ratatouille" which depicted them cooking in a famous restaurant.
Nevertheless in December 2016, Paris officials announced a major crackdown on rats including the closure of parks and gardens around the City of Light.
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