Back story:
My brother has had this cat Dookie Monster (named after the Green Day album and she was a monster cat as a kitten) for 14 years. We got her right after our parents divorced. She has been his sidekick ever since. She has gone through ever difficult move, and life change right with him. She is by far his cat and puts up with hardly anyone else. She gets jealous when he has friends over and really mad when he has girlfriends. (Lucky for her it doesn't happen much) So long story short he loves her more than he's loved anyone.
Current: Dookie went missing the week of my brother's birthday. We all pretty much knew she went away to die. He's very sad, this is like losing his best friend. I've loved and cared for my animals but they've never been my best friend. I don't know how to help him through this.
He would like to get a new cat to help fill the void but he knows that he has some life changes coming up that a new cat just won't fit into.

So any advise? I'm 3,000 miles away and it kills me that he's hurting. I know I can't make it all better but I want to know if there is something I can do or say that would help him deal with the pain.

Thanks.

Just like any relationship, it's not smart to jump right into another one right away. I put my cat down in July of 2006, and got a new kitten that same month. I never got over my older cat, honestly. Tell him how she's safe from any harms way now, and she'll always be around him. Call me weird, but I sense my old cat in my new kitten. I love my cat, he's my best friend.

give him some time, let him settle into these new life changes. and then maybe he will be ready for a new kitty.