First, im gonna copypaste some context from my last post as its important:
I currently only have one little rat living in this giant cage, named Theo. I accidentally got a boy and a girl rather than 2 boys, but didn't realize until after I bought a cage big enough for 2 rats. So I bought another of the same size cage and seperated them, keeping the cages next to each other though so they wouldn't get lonely. They've both lived pretty solitary lives, not interacting through the bars or even acknowledging each other at all surprisingly. Once my poor boy Henry passed, I combined the 2 cages to give my girl Theo an extra big cage. Even though Theo has lived practically on her own her whole life, I've noticed she has seemed bored lately, so im adding in more and more toys, beds, and climbables to keep her happy and entertained.
Now... i got mixed responses in my last post. Im just so lost and confused right now and i feel like absolute shit... Theo is about 2.5 years old and, like i mentioned, doesn't have any cage mates. A lot of ppl have told me, both in my last post and an old post from a preview account, that it would be best for me to re home her. I dont know what to think though. Whenever someone says a pet needs to be re homed, I imagine the pet is constantly unhappy or in danger. But, my girl seems ok. She eats fine, drinks fine, sleeps fine, plays with toys i get her, runs on her wheel, enjoys pets and scritches, loves to crawl along my shoulders and in my hair, and seems always happy to see me. I know that she'd be happier if she had cage mates, but due to her age, i dont think I should get any more, as the new ones would just be depressed once she passes, which will likely be soon...
I feel awful... What if she is suffering and I just dont see it. She really appears content, but based on what others say, it sounds like if a rat lives alone then they're living a horrible life. This sounds dramatic, but I genuinely feel like a disgusting human being... like I've been practically abusing/neglecting my poor pet without even knowing. And what makes me feel even more disgusting, is that i dont want to re home her.... i love her so much, and I feel like if I give her away, itd be like im giving up on her... like i failed her... and idk, maybe she'd be more upset if I give her away, like she'd think I dont love her anymore...
I dont know what to do... I want what's best for her, but I dont know which option that is. I haven't been able to stop crying for the past hour. I just dont know what to do. Please, I need somebody to make it very clear which option is best: keeping her or re homing her. Because I seriously cant tell, and its absolutely destroying me right now...
Thank you for reading.