I don't mean physically, since we have a pretty good idea of that already. I mean more... mentally? Would a cat ascended have the urge to knead with its paws/hands? Would a dog ascended have to resist the urge to bark at squirrels? Would a goat ascended headbutt things? Or does the remaining human part of them override all of the animal instinct?
Yes. Renekton was struggling with the mindless rage of an alligator before the fall of Shurima, and Nasus was a good boy.
At this point it is safe to assume a cat Ascended would struggle against the urge to chase small creatures and sleep at all times of the day.
I would say its more like a symbolic representation or simply just to match the Egyptian gods.
Lets hope Setaka is an elephant so she has a good memory of everything that happened over the tens of thousands of years
