Star Trek is mostly about characters that joined The Federation on a mission of discovery and helping others. The way these people interact, fall in love, and make the best choices that they can for the galaxy.
However, in the rare case, Trekkies get a closer peek in on their personal lives, not just their work ones. One way that fans get to understand their favorite better is by meeting their pets. These various animals speak to what kind of person these officers are beyond their science stations or captain's chairs.
So, today, let's appreciate some fluffy (or unfluffy) best friends.
Janeway's Molly
Fans only see a picture of Molly, at best, but she is a very handsome, reddish brown pup. From her photo with Janeway's partner, Mark, she looks like a happy, healthy Irish Setter.
Few people know what Janeway's Earth life was like, but with that lovely girl by her side? It was probably a pretty content existence. Moreover, her love for her Irish Setter is a nice foreshadowing for Janeway's affection for the holographic Safe Haven.
If only she had a holographic Molly to keep her company, too. Maybe that would've helped with some of the loneliness she felt on Voyager.
O'Brien's Christina
Despite the fact Miles O'Brien is a pretty common and cautious every-man, he has a few surprises up his sleeves. He's not just the writer's favorite punching bag in every scene. One cool thing about Miles is his unique pet. And no, not the feline kind that he later has with Molly and Keiko.
When he first appeared on the Enterprise, he was a lesser known transporter chief with a bad Cardassian history. He also had a cool, unique pet: a tarantula. Even better, her name is Christina, of all things.
Miles shows her off once in Ten Forward and was so proud of her.
Worf's Targ
When Worf was a child, he was surrounded by human culture and customs. The Rozhenko family were very kind in adopting him, but he always felt so out of place on Earth. He never felt like he couldn't be himself, that he was a danger to other kids, and he was wildly disconnected from his heritage.
To try to make his life more Klingon, his parents let him have a Klingon Targ, a scary and somewhat violent version of a dog.
While these creatures are spooky, they are obedient to their masters, so as long as Worf was around his Targ was probably a very good boy.
Phlox's Collection
On Enterprise, Phlox has a collection of creatures that he keeps in his med-bay. It includes a sand worm, an ominous dark water animal, and most famously, his Pyrithian Bat. Phlox treats them more like adorable decorations for his office, but despite what he says about them existing there to be studied, he seems to have quite a bit of affection for his animals. For example, he talks to his bat sometimes when they're alone.
He's not the only one who enjoys the bat and his other creatures, though. Some of the crew enjoys spending time with and feeding the animals in his collection.
Barclay's Neelix
Barclay's holodeck addiction is a core part of his personality. He wants to desperately to connect with people, but when he's struggling the most, he leans on connecting with holographic people. Considering Vic Fontaine and the infamous Doctor himself, it's debatable if calling them fake is fair.
However, when Barclay fell back into his old habits, he started hanging out with a holographic version of Voyager's crew. One hilarious result is that Barclay named his beautiful, fluffy cat after the Talaxian, Neelix.
Also pretty hilarious, considering the show kinda treated Neelix like a pet in the first place.
Picard's Number One
While everyone enjoys Picard's beautiful lionfish from his Enterprise ready room, Picard's Number One is a great companion. A sweet, gentle pit bull, Number One keeps Picard company on his vineyard along with his Romulan friends.
After the failed Romulan rescue effort, Picard quit Starfleet and retreated to his childhood home. Where he distanced himself from most of his old friends and colleagues, Number One was always by his side.
Fans know that bringing a dog on a dangerous space mission isn't the best idea, but it's tragic not to see his cute face anymore.
Patrick Stewart also deliberately asked for a pit bull, to try to help improve their public image. It's a sweet relationship all around.
Archer's Porthos
Porthos is an adorable little Beagle that helped add a unique, personal touch to the metal walls of the Enterprise. Though Captain Archer is arguably pretty irresponsible about caring for him in alien space, that's not the cute pup's fault.
And when Archer can be pretty irritating sometimes, at least Porthos' sweetness and kindness makes it all better.
Porthos would be higher on the list if he wasn't the root cause of one of the most annoying, tiresome episodes of Enterprise: "A Night in Sick-Bay".
While he deserves better than that weird, painful, uncomfortably horny episode, it exists and he's the star of it.
Tribbles
Okay, in all actuality, Tribbles are absolutely awful pets. They use their cuteness to get fed so that they can start reproducing and eating out the entirety of peoples' homes, ships, and worlds. With their abilities to exponentially breed, they can be a real danger to anyone they come in contact with.
Despite all that, though, these little fluffballs are still the cutest things to ever happen to Kirk's Enterprise. If fans are so enamored with the little creatures, they deserve serious credit as one of the best pets in Star Trek. Not because they're good pets, but because they are so adorable and memorable.
Spock's I-Chaya
While most people don't concern themselves with the animated series, there is one important creature in the series that does matter: I-Chaya. As a child, Spock had a sehlat (a dog-bear) named I-Chaya. This animal was completely devoted to the young Vulcan. When they were attacked by a dangerous, frightening Vulcan creature, I-Chaya risked its life to protect Spock.
An older Spock, coming through time, saved the pair from the animal. However, it wasn't fast enough. Spock's pet was gravely wounded and passed away.
Despite his Vulcan nature, Spock loved I-Chaya as much as the sehlat loved him, and it was a wholesome, sweet, emotional moment in the logical man's life.
Data's Spot
Easily, the best pet in all of Star Trek is Data's beautiful lady Spot. A sweet and gentle cat, Data got her to try to understand living creatures better. While she doesn't change his android nature, she brings intrigue and comfort into his life like few others do. And Data's poetry about her? Some of the most wholesome art in all of Star Trek.
Whether it's general care or pregnancy, Data does everything he can to care for her and make her life the happiest it can be. No matter how many times he says he doesn't understand human emotions, the way he tells people how Spot likes to be pet shows a level of devotion and care that few humans show. Data and Spot are the best.