might be taking in my parents 17 year old

when i was 11 years old, we found a litter of 2 day old kittens in our yard..the mother was killing them one at a time (she was a very young stray) so we took the litter in..there was six left alive. we bottle fed them, raised them, and kept two and rehomed four of the other babies.
cut to 17 years later..
the male we kept (tigger) is going downhill with an infection that may have already spread to his brain..the female (cuddles) is VERY close to him. also, in recent months my mother's allergy to cats has gotten so bad that they have had to be seperated from the household and she feels tremendous guilt. she has also suffered numerous medical problems and has just not have had enough energy to try to spend time with them and deal with the allergy. my father is in his seventies and pets them a bit but they don't get a lot of attention like before.
there is a big possibility tigger will be put to sleep soon (like tomorrow)..he is having a crucial appointment in the morning and my parents fear is to leave the 17 year old female alone in a room seperated from everyone and she will die of loneliness or a broken heart. her health is still good but she is so extremely attached to her littermate and extremely affectionate when anyone enters the room (she will cuddle you forever if she could).
i have decided to step in and take in this little girl if or when tigger passes. i have a household of monsters that are yound and playful and she is a very mellow cat so i will probably put her in an extra room we have for her litterbox, food, and bed. but i am on disability and home 95% of the time and can spend one on one time with her alone in other rooms of the house (like when i'm on the computer or just want to lay down and read a book for a few hours..or even watch tv).
all this little girl wants is affection. i love all my babies but because they are very young right now a lot of time they are doing their own thing..as in exploring the house, finding new things to get into, etc. and there are so many times i've wished i had a mellow older baby to just sit or lay with me and cuddle.
i think i could make the rest of her life better and she could thrive with me. with so many personalities in this house, i've become a master at juggling seperating some from others while spending time with everyone seperately in the way they prefer...there are so many hours of the day she could just lay with me and be with me. even since she was young, she was always this type of cat.
my mom said after i offered this she would even offer to help out with any financial costs for her food, litter, etc. and probably make the four hour drive up here and drop off a forty pound bag of food to start with and everything. she just doesn't want to put a healthy elderly cat down or let her die of loneliness alone in a room in their house.
if and when tigger passes (which is probably soon no matter what), they will travel up here and drop her off with all her things so i could pay loads of attention to her during the grieving phase.
i know she is 17 years old, but i feel a responsibility to this baby i nursed when i was a young girl to let the rest of her life be the best it could be.
will keep you posted what's going on...i have so much love to give and want to make this beautiful older girl happy and help her have the will to live and thrive.

I hope she will be ok. My Meeko was very upset when Stormy was Pts and refused to eat. Stormy was my almost 16 year old Cats Girl. I had just got Oreo before stormy died. The day I got Oreo Coco let her nurse on her even though she is almost 16. They are good friends. I have 2 young Cats Sasha 1.5 and Oreo almost 6 Months. Meeko will be 8 in June. Meeko lost her only Kitten Yoshi on Jan 11 and was very upset again. He had to be Pts at age 5 from Kidney Stones. she has become very good friends to Oreo too. Coco and Meeko are very good friends too. How old are your other Cats? I keep my younger Cats in the other room when I am not home. Coco stays out here.

I have taken in my parents' cat because they are too elderly to cope with her. I have got her separated from the others in my bedroom, and am gradually introducing her to them one at a time, as Cinders has always been an only cat. And I can spend time with her too - she is very affectionate with humans, very wary with other cats. She is now OK with three of them after four months.

I am sorry you are in this position of probably losing Tigger. But I wish you good luck for the future.

thanx for your replies. i only have one other kitty that is 10 months old and quite the character and very playful. i really want to make sure cuddles is protected but it would be nice if she felt part of a household again. i will probably very protective of her and maybe only try to introduce her to my cat and the oldest dog in the house who is really mellow. i was even thinking of some kind of big enclosure where she could see what's going on and feel like she's out with everyone but safe when she wants to rest and be mellow. she pretty much just likes to sleep and cuddle right now. i really want to give her all the love she deserves. i hope she thrives and doesn't get depressed. but i'm thinking with a new environment and love it might stimulate her enough to want to keep going on.

I am sure you will find a solution. I would make certain that she always has a 'safe place' where she cannot see or be seen by the others - that will give her security. Either a room of her own, or a crate or box that she can hide in and that the others cannot access. Start her off in there, so she knows it is hers.

guess what?!!!
tigger's swelling is not an infection like they originally thought..it is a non malignant frontal lobe tumor..it cannot be removed by surgery without killing him but he is comfortable, happy, and may even live a year longer..SOOOOOOOOOOO...
I'M TAKING BOTH OF THEM!!!!!
tigger's face will continue to grow more deformed..as the tumor progresses he may have a slight headache and may occasionally need it drained, some cortisone, and low does painkillers. one day it will eventually burst and the vet says that there will be no pain and death will be instant. but he is perfectly happy now and she sees no reason to put him down (he was loving the vet, the techs, even people in the lobby).
it may sound like bad news but i just want to make him so happy with the time we have left. my parents are making the drive next saturday...my boyfriend and i are setting up a safe place for them to lounge and we are even going to build an outdoor enclosure so they can bask in the sun on pretty days...
i'm so excited!

I am glad he has maybe a year left.

that is good news about tigger! it sounds as though him and cuddles are going to have a wonderful time with you. it's so good to hear about people that are willing to go that extra mile for these cats. good for you!