Cat Life Expectancy and a death...

My son's girlfriend lost a cat today. She moved here from California,
and her mom kept one kitty. That cat was 15, and just stopped eating.
All blood tests and physicals turned up nothing, and poor old Max just
died at the Vet's.

She's broken up, and I can't find the words to reassure her. I've lost
almost a dozen cats in my lifetime, and there really is nothing you
can say - they're such delicate creatures - "the candle that burns the
brightest burns the briefest".

Tiger is 12 now, a mutt with Maine-Coon-ish genes. We've had him for
the longest I've had any cat. He is extremely healthy, and routinely
boxes our 4-year old bengal and comes out on top.

Tiger's an indoor cat - what's a realistic expectation for his life
expectancy? My son picked him out of a farm-cat litter when he was a
toddler. Though I've dealt with a lot of cat deaths, when Tiger goes
it'll be a big blow to him - prolly when he's away at college. Hell,
it'll be a big blow to me, too.

BLink
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