Why I love my cat, and why (I'd like to think that) he loves me too

Like most of you cat-lovers out there, I appreciate having a pet that is neither loud nor particularly boisterous (and this immediately excludes almost all members of the canis clan). The cat in question isn't solely my own pet, being shared by no fewer than six other family members and one other feline (the bromance between these two is undeniable), but regardless of this as of recent I have felt a particular bond to this such cat - name of Tom.

It is always of certain question whether these kitties actually feel any love or loyalty towards their privileged human companions, cats in general are often portrayed as aloof and unconcerned - or at least such were the results of a psychological experiment carried out by the BBC's Horizon documentary on cats (June 2013). The conclusion of the test was that cats are not necessarily loyal to their owner (but a cat has no notion or cattish idea of being "owned" in the first place, no?). This however doesn't rule out the potential for them to be loving and compassionate creatures, or I would at least like to believe that, based on my own experience.

"But Josh!" You may say... "What about all the little mice, baby birds, squirrels, hedgehogs, rabbits -goldfish -tortoises ETC... - that these meandering mild-mannered moggies murder..?" Well it is no lie that cats do like to get their claws in a lot of things, be they feathered, furry, scaled or other BUT LET'S FACE THE FACTS HERE: This tendency for taking other life is also a characteristic of the human race - one we as a whole practice a lot more than our instinctive kitties do, and we think that our ability to reason justifies us!

Also, it's worth considering that few cats harm people, and when they do, injuries are usually not fatal. (I have sustained many cat scratches ,most of them I deserved, and still have both my eyes). The same cannot be said for dogs. It's rather troubling to read every couple of months ,in the papers of tragic stories regarding what is commonly referred to as "man's best friend". But Macbeth killed his best friend... (Oh dear) Now I am not saying that we should destroy all dogs (perhaps consider deporting the dangerous ones) but in my books, it's the cats that are ironically the misjudged underdog in this equation.