Data is very proud of his sheep cat, but he won't admit to anyone that it is actually artificial.
As a fully functional android, Data knows that Spot isn't supposed to talk or fly or do The Thing impressions
Has anyone ever done an investigation into the number of crew that disappear when Data's cat is around?
Nah, another reference to the book Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep. In the book, owning a real, live animal is considered a mark of high status. However, animals are hard to care for and die easily, so many people "fake" that status by having an artificial animal. In the book, Deckard and his wife are quite devastated over the loss of his goat.
That's my fault in the original comment, I remembered it as a sheep, not a goat, because of the title of the book.
I have seen things you people would not believe... Borg ships on fire in the 21st century. I've watched Lt. Worf caper in scarlet tights. All those moments will be lost... like Yar in tar.