One of my rats has died

Question
I am 12 years old and I have 2 male (un-neutered) pet rats which I have had for about 18 months from being babies and I got them from a pet store.  I have quite a big cage with sawdust as bedding, I give them a mixture of dry rat food which is in the cage all day and I give them left over food we have in the house which they have once a day.  Today one died, would I be able to get another friend for him, I can pick the other rat up but only for a short while and he can bite me from time to time.

Answer
You CAN get him a buddy; but I recommend a much younger friend (just weaned, preferably) and follow proper quarantine, as outlined here:

http://ratguide.com/health/basics/quarantine.php

After quarantine, introduce your new baby and the older male in a neutral area where neither one is dominant, and I generally prefer to use this time to sanitize and clean the cage. After the cage is prepared and the boys are properly introduced, you can put them together. Here's more specifics on that process:

http://ratguide.com/care/behavior/introducing_rats.php

Good luck with it hon!