Seems that every time around the first cold snap (Wisconsin) I have problems
with mice in the house. I presume they find a way into the house to escape the
cold. I'll be sitting there watching TV and see the dreaded gray streak go
across the floor out of the corner of my eye. I then track them down, moving
furniture, and then used a tennis racket and/or a broom and caught and killed a
couple of them.

I now know I've got mice in the house so I buy a half dozen traps, bait them
with peanut butter or cheese and put them in likely mouse traffic areas, like
in the utility room under the stairs and behind appliances. I'd catch one or
two more mice using this method. For the rest of the fall and winter, I don't
see any mice or find any droppings. Then when it warms up next spring, I'll see
a mouse or two running across the floor. It doesn't make sense for them to be
coming into the house if it's warming up outside, does it? Now I'm thinking
they were living here all winter and decided they wanted to go out. I go
through the same process with catching and killing what I see and also setting
traps. I'll get 2 or 3 mice, then they seemingly disappear.

This summer, thinking the mice had left the shelter of the house, I put steel
wool in some of the cracks where I suspect they may be entering the house,
hoping to pre-empt their entrance at the first cold snap. Then, about a month
ago, I put D-Con in the utility room, but no traps. I monitored the D-Con and
noticed that up until last Saturday, none of it was missing. Then on Sunday the
whole box was empty. I could hear scurrying between the walls around the
utility room and also thumping noises. I figured it was the mice in their death
throes. I figured a whole box (1 1/2 ounces) must have fed more than one mouse.
Not sure if I got them all, I bought another box of D-Con and put it in the
same location as the last box. It took a couple of days but about half the box
has now been eaten. I've also noticed a foul smell while walking down the
stairs (above the utility room) which I presume is a dead mouse or mice between
the floor and ceiling. I shudder to think of an entire mouse city existing
between the floor and ceiling.

Questions I have a

1. Should I keep replacing any empty boxes of D-con with more boxes until there
is no more D-Con being eaten? (And presumably all the mice are dead?)

2. Assuming I have one or two dead mice, how long until the foul smell is gone?
Mice can't weigh more than an ounce or so, so I figure it should dissipate in a
few days, but am asking the group for their experiences.

3. I've heard that using D-Con causes the mice to bleed internally and get
extremely thirsty. This causes the mouse to go outside and seek water sources.
Is the bit about the mice wanting to go outside true? Even if it is, I have a
floor drain in the utility room and a whole house humidifier drain hose going
into it, so any mice have all the water they need.

4. Should I set out traps again?

Any other tips or experiences would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Sylvester