I just re-watched TNG "In Theory" (S04E25) and Data says that the door to his quarters is set to only allow humanoids to enter or leave when Geordie finds Spot in the hall.
Whilst I get that it would be dangerous for Spot to wander the ship freely I think it's kind of mean to keep him locked in a small room like that forever. There doesn't seem to be any cat toys in the room but maybe the computer is capable of some sort of environmental enrichment we can't immediately see.
Do you have a cat? There would be several episodes about Spot breaking various ship systems and causing cat-astrophes
Your summary feels like an episode of Lower Decks demanding to be written!
T'Ana
What does T'Ana feel about humanoids having pet cats in the first place?
"Why does everyone have to tell ME about their f***ing pets?!"
cat-astro-phes
Damage on a Federation space ship would create a hefty ...
cat-astro-fee
I want cat-as-trophy
Not really. His quarters seem spacious enough and as long as he has plenty of engagement - which we can assume he did because of his study of having a pet, indoor cats are perfectly happy lazy balls of frustrating love.
I mean, there are trucker cats who are happy.
Plus, cats are nocturnal and are most active at night. Data does not always sleep, so on nights where he’s not on the bridge, he could be spending quality time with Spot.
Cats are actually crepuscular, meaning they're most active at dawn and dusk, but they can be trained to keep to a mostly human sleep schedule (by which I mean sleeping 8 of their 15 daily hours at the same time you do).
He does tell spot that that he is a good cat and a pretty cat.
Not to mention the fact that Data is literally incapable of getting bored.
Yeah, I get the impression TNG quarters are about the size of a studio apartment, which isn't amazing for cats, but it can work if you keep them entertained.
I have an introvert cat that would think I was torturing her if I were to make her leave her little spaces.
My cat was the opposite. He longed for adventure! Excitement! The great outdoors.
I'd take him on walks on a little cat harness. He was perfectly happy to roam. I think we got 4 blocks away one time before I finally had to say "Look, cat, it's getting late. Time to go home again."
He was a very good cat.
Meanwhile, Picard's lionfish in that tiny-ass globe:
~blub~
Apparently, his name is Livingston.
Dr Livingston I presume?
Yes, but the doctorate is honorary.
I always imagined that there was an unseen conduit for the lionfish to go hang out in the Cetacean ops ecosystem.
It seems like the upper staff on the ship get quarters that are roughly the size of a 1 or 2 bedroom apartment. Not great, but not worse than what lots of people do IRL.
Plus maybe he sometimes takes spot to a cargohold for more active play. There would be plenty of space, lots of height, etc. And that's all before even considering the holodeck.
I think it's more messed up that Spot changed breeds and genders more than ones.
Data kept killing Spots.
Plot twist:: it was always a hologram
Plot twist 2: it was a droid capable of changing it's fur
I'm sure Data had Spot out at one point and they spent six hours climbing through Jeffrey's Tubes to find him.
To be fair, you can't treat Spot like an outdoor cat on a space ship. Unlike kids there's no one assigned to Spot to keep track of them in an emergency.
And before you say well Data is responsible for that, keep in mind data will pretty always have his attention monopolized by an emergency on this ship. So the best thing for Spot is to be in a known location.
Now I'm wondering if Data ever brought Spot to the Holodeck. "Computer, run program Spot #7" (looks like a farm setting with space-squirrels and such)
Wait, didn't spot become pregnant with an unknown other ship cat? This would imply at least some kind of free roaming.
https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Spot
In 2370, Spot became pregnant by one of the twelve male cats aboard the Enterprise-D at that time. Data paid attention to her health, including bringing her to sickbay for a check-up just before giving birth. (TNG: "Genesis")
I checked a transcript, and saw this line between him an Barclay, implying not only that Spot "escaped," but that there are other cats also loose:
BARCLAY: I'm curious, sir. Who's the father?
DATA: I am not certain. Spot has escaped from my quarters on several occasions and there are twelve male felines on board. I intend to run a full DNA analysis on the kittens once they [he is interrupted by Picard on speaker]
gonna find the father and get child support kibble lol
Are you kidding? Spot got out whenever she damn well felt like it. There's no way that Data didn't figure out how to keep the cat from unlocking the door; I'm pretty sure that spot came and went whenever she felt like it. Especially when you remember that all of the toughest guys on the ship were terrified of that cat lol
In the episode where Spot gives birth, it is clear Spot gets out.
I feel like TNG missed a trick by not have a Feline Ops department.
"Ensign Spot, what is your report on the feline habitability of Eridani 3?"
"Meh."
Animals, not kids or personnel, should have the primary use of holodecks, if not just their own to live in.
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