Cat A cat ( " Felis catus " ) was a small predatory mammal from Earth , that were noted to purr when happy or content . A young cat was called a kitten . Some animal training manual s claimed that cats , by nature , could not be trained . ( ) Unlike canine s , they did not respond to verbal commands . ( ) Individuals of this type were often kept as pet s among Human s . Examples of cats kept as pets included Spot , owned by Data , ( ) , owned by Reginald Barclay , ( ) and Chester , owned by Liam Bilby and , later , Miles O ' Brien . ( ) William T . Riker hated cats , but Beverly Crusher loved them . ( ) In 2267 , the alien demonstrated the power to assume the form of a cat . She accomplished this feat with the aid of a device called the transmuter , which was the one element of her wardrobe that did not change shape . ( ) In 2268 , the , on a mission in the 20th century , encountered Gary Seven , an agent of a benevolent alien power that interfered to prevent civilizations from destroying themselves . He was accompanied by a cat named Isis , who was more than she initially appeared to be . Exactly what she was remains a mystery . She was evidently capable of understanding Gary Seven , and of communicating with him in at least a rudimentary fashion , and she accompanied him wherever he went . ( ) In 2269 , a landing party from the " Enterprise " , while visiting the Shore Leave Planet , encountered a mechanical manifestation of an abnormally massive cat . ( ) Later that year , after the " Enterprise " experienced an impulse wave from the Cepheus system , Captain James T . Kirk asked Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott about the performance of the engines . " " Purring like happy kittens , Captain " " was Scott ' s response . ( ) When she lived on the failed colony Turkana IV , Natasha Yar felt obligated to protect a cat while being chased by a rape gang . The cat appeared in illusory form when the Traveler inadvertently sent the to the " edge of the universe . " ( ) In 2366 , Jeremy Aster used to play " Captain Patches " with his pet cat , pretending Patches was a captain flying through space . ( ) In 2370 , Geordi La Forge borrowed Data ' s cat Spot in order to experience feline behavior before possibly getting his own cat . After the unruly feline broke a vase , a teapot , used a chair as a scratching post , and cough ed up hairball s on La Forge ' s carpet , the engineer happily returned Spot to her owner . ( ) As of that year , there were 12 male felines aboard " Enterprise - D " . ( ) " Cat " was one of numerous words Miles O ' Brien used due to his infection of the aphasia virus . ( ) " In the anti - time future seen by Jean - Luc Picard , Data had amassed a diverse collection of cats while a professor at Cambridge University . " ( ) " In the alternate reality , nearly a year after stardate 2259 . 55 , after the was rechristened , Captain asked Chief Engineer about the performance of the new warp core . " " Purrin ' like a kitten , captain " " was Scott ' s response . " ( ) Appendices . Background information . There have been multiple behind - the - scenes references likening Vulcans to cats . An early description of the character Spock ( from " Star Trek is . . . " , reprinted in " The Making of Star Trek " , p . 30 , and NBC ' s early - publicity booklet , reprinted in " " ) described him as having a cat - like curiosity about everything of alien origin , even to his detriment . The final draft script of referred to him launching himself at Simon Van Gelder , upon subduing him , with " a cat - like leap " ( though in the final version of the episode , Spock runs to Van Gelder ' s position , instead of leaping ) . Also , the final draft script of described Spock as " slipping with catlike agility through and among the rocks " on Taurus II , during a search for Lieutenant Gaetano . Similarly , during a press conference to announce the start of , T ' Pol actress Jolene Blalock expressed that T ' Pol was " feline in her movements . " ( ) The character was described as landing " cat - like " on a landing platform in the final draft script of . Upon describing how Jahn was to steal a bunch of communicator s , the final draft script of likewise repeatedly likened him to a cat ; the script ' s stage directions stated that he " slips catlike " into a room where those devices were being kept , and had " a cat - eating - the - canary look on his face " as he made his getaway . Lenore Karidian was similarly likened to a cat in the final revised draft script of . When describing how she was to quickly prepare herself for breaking free from a pair of security guards at the end of the episode , the teleplay commented , " " At their touch Lenore gathers like a cat . " " Referring to the fact his initial impressions of " Star Trek " were formed by watching TOS , Archer actor Scott Bakula noted , " " I ' m an old cat . " " ( ) Jenny Parks depicted characters from both TOS and TNG as cats in " Star Trek Cats " and " " .