Awww, Bubba is bu-bu-bu-beautiful!

Eva

Yep.  My Sammy is a rescue, like all my masters, but if I had to guess from
size, coloring, and temperment I would say she is 99.9999999999% Maine Coon,
and she sheds "PRODIGIOUSLY*.  On the good side, for being a long-haired
cat, she needs very little brushing and doesn't get but maybe one or two
mats a year in her hair (usually in her "britches" area).

Hugs,

CatNipped

No need to get a breed. The common domestic shorthair will do and they
come in all colors - grey, black, brown, orange and striped. Go to a
shelter (www.petfinder.com will give you a comprehensive list of
shelters in your area), find a knowledgeable volunteer and ask her to
help you find a mellow, short-haired cat who would do well in an
apartment situation. If the person you are talking to doesn't seem to
know the cats very well - ask around until you find someone who does
and can help you make a good match for your mom. She'll be doing a
wonderful thing by adopting an adult shelter kitty and should feel very
good about herself - and get a loving and grateful companion at the
same time. It's a win-win for everyone.

colour really is not a consideration for me normally I just go fro the
one who has been inthe shelterlongest as I assume that is the one other
people have been overlooking and will be hardest to rehome unless I
take it home, not really bothered if it is friendly either (well who
would be if they were stuck in a pen in a cat shelter all day long?
they usually cheer up when they have settled in your house anyway and
show their true character). I currently have a tortie and white, you
yanks call it a calico i believe, I was dithering at the time between
her and a black tom cat. I wanted to take both home but they were not
compatible in the socialising room so we decided nto to push it and I
took jessie the calico home by herself. What swung it for me was that
she was older and was on medication for hyperthyroidism and I decided
that this would make it harder for her to be rehomed than the other one
who did not have these complications, so I took jessie. When i rang the
shelter later to report on jessie's progress I asked about the black
cat and was relieved to find he had been homed fairly quickly after i
left despite his colour with another cat as a companion.

if faced with the same situation again i do not know what i would do, i
obviously would not change jessie for anything (except maybe her talent
for covering everything she goes near with white hairs, thats somethign
you do not get with black cats and a definite plus point in their
favour) but knowing how hard it is for shelters to rehome black cats i
think I will be keen to pick one next time, even if it does not have
the usual off-putting medical and behavioural complications which I
normally go for. That's the dilemma; if faced with the choice between a
pretty tabby or pale coated cat cat with a medical problem (and
therefore hard to rehome because peopel don't like the fuss and
expense) and a normal black cat with no such issues (but still hard to
rehome because peolpe have something against black cats) which do i go
for? I know the obvious answer is to take them both home but sometimes
this is not possible.
someone help me out!!!!

Bookie

My favorite cat, Nico, was black. One of my current cats (Espy) is
very much like him, although not in coloring. I'd guess that he was
Nico reincarnated except their lives overlapped by a few months. They
both talk the same way, a long series of grunts, squeals, and trills.
Maybe Espy learned it from Nico.