(source- Facebook and Pintrest - various)
Jones the cat from Alien could be the most famous cat in Sci Fi, except perhaps for the Cat from Red Dwarf, evoling into human form over a million years from its ancestor Frankenstein.
"If cats looked like frogs we'd realise what nasty, cruel little bastards they are. Style. That's what people remember - Terry Pratchett
Then there was Spot - the cat that Data from Star Trek - Next Generation tried to train, only to discover that the cat trained him around feeding and petting.
Remember Orion from the first Men in Black movie, that carried a universe in its collar.
So why do cats feature so much? Is it because we are used to having them by our side at times fo crisis? Because we revere them?
My view is simple - its because they have the same strenghts and foibles as the human characters - they inhabite a part of our world but bring with them the same emotinal range, and no hesitation in showing it. And they are entertaining!
Anthropormothism - no!
One last cat to mention in the one with no name in my book "The Code" - guilty of everything from theft to attempted murder - but still allowed to sleep on the bed.
For more, have a look at the cats of sci fi and fantasy.