Weasel

a small animal of the marten family. There are a dozen or fifteen species. The least weasel, an inhabitant of the country northwest of Hudson Bay, is the smallest carnivorous animal known. The common weasel is brown in summer and white in winter, save that the tip of the tail is black. As a foe of the poultry yard the weasel is worse than a mink. The body is so slender that the little murderer can go through any hole that will admit its flat, wicked head. It does not hesitate to seize chickens, ducks, and rabbits by the throat, and will kill seemingly for the ferocious love of killing. In favor of the weasel it may be said that a pair will clear buildings of rats and mice. See Ermine