Do the cats love me back?

Any reader of this blog knows about my fondness for my two kitties Tom and Ruby. I find them to be very cute and endlessly amusing, and I have always thought that these feelings were reciprocated. However yesterday I saw a news item about a leopard which had wandered into the grounds of a school in India. Video footage was shown of the frisky leopard chasing unfortunate individuals, leaping up at them and biting them. It also climbed up a wall and walked along it nonchalantly.*

And in its movements and behaviour it reminded me a great deal of my own two cats, except bigger. Tom enjoys reaching out with his paw to grab at my foot when I walk past him. Ruby likes to bite my hand (gently) when I play with her. They both stalk us around the house and garden in what I always assumed is an affectionate manner. 

On seeing the news item I wondered how Tom and Ruby would treat me if they were leopard sized. Would they still defer to me as one of the adults of the house, or would they play with me like one of the unlucky mice they bring in? They play with these mice to death - and beyond - throwing the poor little bodies against the wall in an attempt to liven them up for more fun. 

While considering this I started clearing up ready for bed and this is the signal for the cats to demand supper (they always like to guard against night starvation.) As I carried my tea mug towards the sink both cats slid off their beds and padded after me silently. Their eyes looked intent, their faces absolutely expressionless. I felt as if I was an antelope in the Serengeti.

* The story had a happy ending; no one was seriously injured and the leopard was tranquilliser and rehomed in a nature reserve.