..as to the smelly and too-big part.
I agree.. cats, like dogs, have an effect on the infantile homo-sap emotional center; tend to soothe. Dogs are loved because they are so.. Servile! *YOU* are the center of Their Universe.. as: to no sentient fellow homo-s.
Cats OTOH are utterly independent, 'Servile' only when reminding You about the Time for Dinner, yet while seeking the warmth of a lap - give the impression that Your Lap really IS #1 (!)
Never mind efforts to figure-out Anything pleasurable, unless yer runnin fer Pope (or now: Attorney General).
Ashton