Are this always exactly the same cat-emojis? Do you have an emoji game or an emoji keyboard app on your smartphone? Maybe this emoji app automatically adds the cats-emojis to your picture gallery.

I have never heard of this problem before. How does the Animojis not work? Do they jerk/lag or do they not shown your movements? The camera works, as you have write. Therefore, I think that the problem is the motherboard and not the camera.