hand raised baby deer mice, late fall release with snow just around the corner

Question
July 11 09 I opened a drawer in my kitchen and found 5 baby deer mice. Mom got it by one of my cats the night before. Only two made it. They are OK and in an aquarium with a wheel. Both are males. Question. I feel bad that I haven't let them go. Snow is just around the corner and the local wildlife care asked me if I thought they would like to live under a rock better than in a cage. Question. They store food for the winter, and it just seems too late to release now. I don't mind keeping them until snow melts in the spring and then soft releasing them. I think it is too late for them to store up enough food for what is supposed to be a hard winter, although I could bring food to their release site.  I also am not sure where to release them.

Answer
In all honestly, if you've had them this long you might as well keep them. Letting them go now, after having been kept in your care for this long may very well lead to their death if they are released into the wild, especially with the cold weather coming soon. Deer mice are commonly kept as pets, and unlike house mice, males usually can be kept together safely without risk of fighting and dominance issues. One thing you do need to watch for is hanta virus. You can research this online. It is a highly deadly upper respiratory infection spread by the feces and urine of wild mice. Check with your local fish and wildlife and see if it is legal to keep them as pets. If not, it would be best to surrender them to your local wildlife rehabilitation center, so that they may make the proper arrangements for these two. Good luck!