baby mouse / questions

Question
Hello,

I found a baby mouse this evening. It was all alone and was moving very slowly. I picked it up and put it in a small cup to bring home. I soon found out though that it preferred the warmth of my hand. I have no idea why it was alone, but I also assumed that if I left it where I found it (in the open) that it would soon be a snack for someone a little higher up the food chain.

Now since this is a wild/field mouse and not a tame or store bought mouse I was curious about a few things:
(1) Lice - I have noticed very small little bugs (not too many of them) coming off of it's body. They are about the size, if not smaller, of a pepper grain. I would rather they not move along to us or to our dog. I have it in a little plastic container with a rag as bedding for now. What can I do about these bugs... and are they lice?
(2) Food - we bought a small can of "Esbilac" which is milk replacement for puppies and are using a syringe to feed it. Is this sufficient? And how often each day must I feed it? I am not around all day so am not sure if I will be able to feed it every few hours. And how long will it only require this kind of liquid food?
(3) When it is older can I release it into the wild? Or will it not survive since it has been hand raised. I would rather it be free than in a cage or home for it's short life...
(4) Disease - is it so that since it is a wild/filed mouse that it can carry disease? I don't want to have something in the house (no matter how cute it is) that can do more harm than good.

Any other suggestions or tips you wish to pass along would be appreciated. Thanks in advance, John.

Answer
1) It is mites coming off him and you can buy something at the pet store to get rid of them, look in the small animal section.

2) The milk replacement is fine and the baby should be fed every three to four hours. Check to see if teeth have come in and then soft solids would be best at first.

3)Since it's hand raised it will be crueler to let it go in the wild, but that is of course up to you.

4) There is always a concern for disease, probably this mouse is disease free. Usually it's sewer or city mice that have more disease because they live in the filth.

Here is a website that you can use to see how old your baby mouse is. http://www.thefunmouse.com/info/daybydaybabies.cfm

Additional tips:
Always make sure the baby is warm, but has a cooler spot he can go too if it gets too hot.

Check for dehydration by pinching the skin and seeing if it stays up for a long time or goes down rather quickly. If it stays up get it some Pedialyte immediately and replace that with the formula until it gets rehydrated.

Weigh the baby to check for weight loss or gain. Weight gain is crucial for survival.

Stimulate the genitals so it can go to the bathroom.