Hi Chris,
 
I looked in my Sleek & Savage book, and here are excerpts from the section
on "Long-Tailed Weasel, Short-Tailed Weasel, Least Weasel":
 
*********
 
"'If this creature were as large as a cougar, nobody would dare to venture
out of doors, because it is second to none, including the badger, in courage,
and is possibly the most bloodthirsty villain on earth.'  Thus an Idaho
biologist describes the weasel.  Tooth for tooth and ounce for ounce, the
weasel is the fiercest and most efficient predator in the mamal world.
 
[We've already noticed... ;-) ]
 
"Three weasel species are found in North America.  Largest is the long-tailed
weasel, Mustela Frenata, which reaches up to twenty-four inches in length
(depending upon subspecies and sex) and weighs six to nine ounces.
Next in size, and often mistaken for its long-tailed relative, is the short-
tailed weasel, Mustela Erminea, which measure eight to thirteen inches and
weighs considerably less - only 2 to 4 ounces.  Difficult as it may be to
imagine a smaller species, there is one: Mustela Nivalis, the least weasel,
which is seven to eight inches long and weighs in at 1 or 2 ounces.  It is the
smallest carnivore in the world.
 
"Overly fierce as weasels may appear, there is reason for this behavior:
they require up to 40 % of their body weight in food every day.  Most of
this is meat, for they are the most carnivorous of all the mustelids.  Contrary
to popular belief, they are not bloodsuckers.  They will kill more than they
can eat but will usually store their surplus for future use.
 
"Small rodents are their staple diet, garnished with rabbits, birds, eggs,
reptiles, amphibians, insects, and worms. The diet of the least weasel is
limited almost entirely to mice.  Its large relatives have been known to raid
henhouses and slaughter whole flocks, much to the fury of the farmer.  Never-
theless, these animals are a boon to him.  As a principal predator of harmful
rodents, they are more effective than any mousetrap in protecting fields and
orchards from meadow mice, rats, and pocket gophers.  It has been claimed
that, were it not for weasels, rats and mice would multiply so rapidly that
they would overrun the earth.
 
"Hyperactive, superaggressive, the weasel is so high-strung that some in
captivity have died from overexcitement.
 
"Summer or winter, the weasel is difficult to spot, not only because of its
furtive movements, but also because of its beautifully blending coat.  Through
natural selection, the northern weasel has gained the capacity to exchange its
summer brown coat for winter white.   These molts, which occur generally in
the more snow-covered northern ranges, are triggered by the changing
duration of daylight.  The amount of light received through the eyes is
believed to influence the pituitary gland, which in turn affects the hormones
controlling the molting cycle.  Thus, in March or April, new dark hairs
appear on the weasel's back and gradually extend down the flanks until the
upper parts turn brown.  In winter the process reverses to white.
 
"Ermine, the fur of kings, is the weasel's natural winter coat.  Its soft,
white pelt, with black tails symbolizing the highest rank, adorns the capes of
Europe's royalty.
 
"Weasels establish home ranges varying in size from a couple of acres to
many miles, depending on the food available.  However, they do not normally
travel over long distances.  In 1933, a tracking study in fresh snow established
the short-tailed weasel's range at 4 miles; another study in 1944 established it
at 3.43 miles.
 
"The short-tailed weasel, commonly called the ermine, closely resembles
the long-tailed weasel except for its smaller size.  In addition, it has a tiny
white line on the inside of the hind leg which extends to its completely white
feet.  The ermine is found over a large range, extending across the northern
United States and throughout Canada.  Colored chocolate above in summer, its
coat turns white in winter throughout its range, except on the humid northwest
coast from southern British Columbia to California, where it remains brown
for the entire year.  Throughout its range, the short-tailed weasel is most
numerous at lower elevations where there is water and a plentiful food supply
of small mammals and birds.
 
"The 2 ounce least weasel is identified by its diminutive size and its very
short tail (1 to 1 1/2 inches long), which is without the distinct
black tip.  From the Alleghenies across the continent to Alaska, it is found
most often in marshes, meadows, and open woodlands.  Only in the southeast
part of its range does it remain brown in winter.  In northern BC,
this little weasel is found sparsely in parkland-type habitats.
 
********
 
I hope this gives you some useful information as far as identifying and the
caring and training of your critter goes.  The book also has more information
on breeding and such, if you want to know.
 
[ It sure does.  No, we don't want to breed it - one is enough! ]
 
Someone else wanted the address of Ferrets Northwest:
 
Ferrets Northwest
c/o Ed Lipinski
4321 86th Ave., S.E.
Mercer Island, WA 98040-4124
 
Concerning the legality of ferrets in California: they are illegal, period.
I know from first hand experience.  Several years ago when we first got our
first ferret, we went to California to spend Christmas with my husband's
relatives.  Not knowing that there would be a problem, we took our ferret
with us.  Anyhow, to make a long story short, we had to leave our ferret
behind with the border check people for 3 days.  They took good care of her
though.  Her litter box was clean and she was fat.
 
Well, enough for now.
 
Shu-Ju
                                                                          
[Posted in FML 0025]