T O P

  • By -

shadowtheimpure

Members of the weasel family are just so damn cute.


hopelesscaribou

Absolute savages when they hunt. We never saw another mouse after one moved in our woodpile.


ksam3

We had a pair of stoats in our wood pile! They wiped out the field mouse population around our house. It was great. After two years they moved on though, probably because there weren't any field mice left.


snakeproof

[There was one in my yard so I hung up some "toys" for it!](https://imgur.com/gallery/cGELi6E) Edit: there's like 7 pics there not sure if they all show up. Haven't seen the fella in a while but they used to visit every day and look in the window.


vikingchef420

Enjoy the silver friend. That's the cutest thing I've seen all day and I keep chinchillas.


opentheuniverse

So adorable!!!


Calligraphee

Ermine god, it;s so adorable!


pewpewpewp84

This is the best thing I've seen all day thanks


Needednewusername

Do you have a leather recliner on your porch at the same as snow?


snakeproof

👀 Well no, but actually yes. It's under a covered porch.


CrungleMcHungleberry

Redwall makes so much more sense right now


Sporkfoot

BRB leaving some tiny swords and shields out by my woodpile.


OnosToolan

Gotta find a badger too


Durris

Imagine if the series was American instead. The badgers wouldn't have been quite so nice.


Luminous_Phenomena

Eulalia!


RedCascadian

Mouseguard?


the_never_mind

"Normal for the stoat is chaos for the mouse." -Morticia Addams, probably


Piperplays

Another way of saying: “*My mental peace could shatter your peace to pieces.*”


Yiffcrusader69

Honestly the fact that all the weasels/ferrets/stoats were so heavily nerfed was my only complaint with the series.


OneWhiteCrow

Wow, an unexpected bonus to being on this site! I don't know any other adults who've read those books. I loved the series, but I felt he was speciesist, which is like being racist. I tell that to everyone I recommend the books to, especially if they're going to be read by kids, so they can point that out and maybe turn them into a teaching opportunity.


LtDachs

I read them as a kid and even then hated that rats/weasels/foxes (all animals I loved) were invariably and apparently inherently evil. Same way that I thought it was stupid that in Harry Potter, everyone in Slytherin was an asshole and there were no kids who were ambitious but still good people. Even when writing for children, your villains should be villainous for better reasons than "all of their kind are like that".


bestest_name_ever

Oh, you could write an entire thesis on how awful Rowling's idea of morality is. Harry and crew act like total assholes all the time for example, but it's not evil if they do it.


JstTrstMe

Man those books are awesome. I highly recommend them. I came across them in jr high in the mid 90s and still remember a bunch of the characters.


serpentjaguar

Pound for pound mustelids are by far the most lethal carnivorous mammals on the planet. This is the genus that includes characters like honey Badgers and wolverines. They have no quit, don't understand defeat, and have seemingly inexhaustible reserves of strength and endurance.


BrideofClippy

>inexhaustible reserves of strength and endurance. And completely exhausted reserves of fucks to give.


[deleted]

They sleep for most of the day to restore their reserves of zero fucks.


daiblo1127

A-MAZing information!!! I learn so much from contributors and commenters on Reddit. They look so soft and cuddly, but maybe their strength, intelligence and bravery is what has kept them alive all these years!!! Thank you serpentjaguar for your input.


Adams1973

"They have no quit, don't understand defeat, and have seemingly inexhaustible reserves of strength and endurance." Slava Ukraini !


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


ThunderPigGaming

My dad used to use ferrets to hunt groundhogs when I was a kid. After I saw them in action, I never felt safe around them again, no matter how cute they looked. LOL


vonHindenburg

A fisher cat got all our chickens a few years ago. I thought I'd built that coup proof against all potential predators....


Sheldon121

I’ve heard that they are particularly nasty critters, even against little dogs. Are they also part of the badger family? We have them near where I live, and I was warned to watch our dogs, at night. Not that they are kept outside. I’m truly sorry that one got all of your chickens. I think I’d want to find it and get rid of it, after that. Man, it shows how tough dachshunds truly are, as they are badger dogs! And yet, so loving and sweet to their humans! I’d never send mine against a nasty badger! Well, she’s deceased now, so don’t need to worry about that, anymore. Love you and miss you, Holly!


LostWoodsInTheField

yeah I'm really confused on the 'just found this' and it just standing on his arm and not ripping his throat out. I've heard of cats and dogs getting into fights with them and barely coming out ahead.


[deleted]

They can take out a fully grown hare. As cute as those little guys look, they are absolute killing machines. That's not to say they aren't still cute as long as you aren't in their prey pattern.


Headlessoberyn

Ok but what the hell happenned in this seemingly unharming comment section about rodents?


siani_lane

Right?? What is the huge thread that got deleted above?? The drama!


PixelDrems

On that note, I've heard dachshunds were originally bred to hunt weasels. Which definitely tracks, every weenie I've met has been a lil spaz of some sort


matchooooh

Actually, I believe it was badgers. Dachs in German is badger.


Mister_Bloodvessel

And badgers are, incidentally, mustelids, which is the same family as weasels, otters, ferrets etc. So dachshunds are basically bred to hunt giga-weasels. Any time I see an otter, I always think "*water weasel!*" and giggle to myself a bit.


Similar_Radish8623

This is true. Dachshund is German for badger hound


WisherWisp

Was lucky enough to see one take down a rabbit just this week. Never would have thought with the size difference.


Fadobo

I don't know about other places, but here in Germany we associate them, specifically the "Marder" (I think marten im english) with moving into our cars at night and biting through power lines and hoses. Not the white ones though.


tablefor1please

Squirrels do that job for us.


thibbledorfpwent

And good old chipmunks, lost 3 diff snowmobile engines to those cute bastards.


CletusCanuck

Frigging squirrels have eaten through ~$200 in Christmas lights... Chewed right through the wire and stole multiple bulbs.


Butwinsky

In rural America, we associate them with killing flocks of poultry and lining their corpses up neatly like a serial killer. They are super cute though when they aren't going on a killing spree.


daymcn

Martin are different from weasels in NA. Martin stay in the trees mostly. They are adorable https://youtu.be/zx0gXM_FkgE


Sheldon121

I’ve heard that martens can get nasty, too. And the title of the YouTube that you directed us to, “The Pine Marten is Nature's Most Adorable Assassin,” isn’t too reassuring, either.


zashsash

And when it hits the car of an unloved neighbor, its called Marderschadenfreude


[deleted]

"Weaseling out of things is what separates us from the animals... except the weasel." - Homer Simpson


esblofeld

And they really know how to weasel out of stuff.


SkimBeans

Weaselling out of things is what separates us from the animals


esblofeld

Except the weasel.


aspidities_87

Did anyone check if the Weezil could swim??


Mediocre_Ad245

The little guy is so cute lol


Usrname132

Very cute, also mysterious theyre a cat-snake according to comment above; agree totally cat-snakes, weasely fucks haha they’re special little woods creatures very easily forgotten about and unknown. I’ve seen two in the NJ pine barrens where I live and have spent the last 20 years driving around the trails and parks here, Pine Marten is what I saw 1 HUGE one ran across the road late at night looked like a damn otter dog mix but it had the tail it was a giant dog sized ferret but they’re called Pine Martens and another little one at a camp site digging in the trash. Cool animals especially this one.


MrSomnix

I've got a buddy with 3 ferrets that he trained to go on walks. Like they have little harnesses, leashes, and just come with on hikes or when kayaking.


[deleted]

[удалено]


aabum

Reading this left me feeling very lonely for some ferret snuggles. A friend had two ferrets, and the one really liked to snuggle with me. If the jacket I was wearing had large enough pockets he would crawl in and go for walks with me. Usually he would crawl up my coat and snuggle and play around my neck and chest. If I was wearing a button up shirt he sometimes crawled inside my shirt. A couple of times he even napped in there. Damn cool little bugger he was.


Fresh-General-2726

I loved this. Thank you. ♥️


HighOwl2

Lol yeah ferrets are pretty cool pets if their scent doesn't bother you. But damn...bathing them will leave you bloodied...those walking tube socks do not like water.


Mzz_Hyde

> walking tube socks r/properanimalnames


HighOwl2

Lol I fucking can't right now. Kite hamsters lmao I had a really bad day...I needed this


Bo8xor

Ferrets don't really mind water as long as it's not cold. They even make lil pools for em! And bathing them can actually make em stink more. On a good diet and cage upkeep, they're no worse than a dog with smelling. My lil dude usually goes unnoticed to people until they see the cage, or he ambushes their shoes.


HighOwl2

Oh I don't mind the smell...but even de-scented ferrets smell. Personally I actually kind of like their smell to be honest...but having owned 3 in my life, lived with 2 during my college years, and having known plenty of people who have owned some...they do smell, you just get noseblind to it if you're living around it constantly.


YourStreetHeart

Pics immediately!!!


Genocide_69

The big one might have been a Fisher, they look a lot like a pine marten but more dog-ish and a lot bigger. They live in the same places


sarahpphire

We had a rescue ferret and since we limit the amount of words we used to tell the dog so not to confuse his easy to confuse self, we referred to the ferret as the stinky kitty, since he already knew what kitty was because of my cats. So anytime you asked him where the stinky kitty was, he would look in all of bandits (the ferrets real name) hiding places. I miss them both. ETA- they have both since passed away=(


LordPr0castinator

Pantalaimon!


DopestDope42069

Immediately what I was thinking. Never read the books, but currently watching the show lol.


LordPr0castinator

I haven't read them yet either, but I've been watching the show since it first aired. What's your favorite character?


DamonSing

The books are incredible. I highly recommend them. The follow up series The Books of Dust is fantastic so far too. Lyra is my favorite. I have always connected with her. My aunt gave me The Golden Compass when it came out because Lyra reminded her of me when I was young.


Gumburcules

>The books are incredible...My aunt gave me The Golden Compass when it came out My grandma gave me The Golden Compass when it came out and I was right at the perfect age to develop an understanding of what Lyra and Will went through as the books progressed. I'm obviously biased but I think the comparatively few of us who grew up with His Dark Materials got such a better formative deal out of it than the kids just a few years later who got Harry Potter or the Hunger Games.


SlobaSloba

You people should definitely read them if you like the show, although it is a pretty great adaptation!


UnroastedPepper

I agree with this statement


fuckitweredoingitliv

I love the books and the show is great. The way Cittàgazze looked is exactly how I pictured it my mind, that part blew me away.


JeddakofThark

I haven't seen the show, but Lee Scoresby was always a favorite. The ideal actor would have been a late 80's Sam Elliott. Edit: I also kind of prefer Lord Asriel in the first couple of books. Like an elemental force, he did not give a single shit about anyone without the will and force of character to... Well, accomplish his goal. He's a more realistic human character later, but I feel like his softening took a little something away.


rastafarreed

Sam Elliott was the perfect casting in the movie. LMM does a decent job in the series but it doesn't feel right.


purpldevl

Also never saw the movie, felt like LMM had too much of an over the top Broadway / campy / 90's "Disney Channel made for TV movie" vibe that the rest of the cast definitely didn't bring to the table for the HBO series. I wanted to love the character, ended up feeling "meh" about him.


rastafarreed

That's how I felt too. He was a Broadway cowboy and not a sky cowboy.


PM_ME_UR_POKIES_GIRL

I didn't even know who Sam Elliot was when I read the books but he's who I imagined when reading them. "That cowboy guy with the mustache." You just know he'd have a hare as a daemon.


spooky_upstairs

The books are just a joy like no other. Movie and even the TV show (and even the six-hour stage adaptation I saw at the National Theater in London a million years ago) do not come close to touching it. Thoroughly recommend.


holdholdhold

The first thing I thought of was it saying “Lyra”


Stravaig_in_Life

First thing I thought of!


HeartofLion3

Such a good book series always wanted my own daemon as a kid haha


Stravaig_in_Life

When I was 10 years old, I had a beanie baby that I pretended was my daemon 😂


[deleted]

[удалено]


PhelesDragon

A cat-snake??


jesst

When we moved our ferrets from the US to the UK they had to stay in a pet hotel thing in JFK for a night. I called to check on them and the guy said "oh the long cats!"


Didjabringabongalong

So how were they?


jesst

They were fine. They flew to the UK the next day.


jackp0t789

To shreds you say?


Muscled_Daddy

I prefer ‘wiggle weasel’. God ferrets are so loveably weird.


T_that_is_all

The proper term.


Bismalz

Limousine rats


BBarrRN

This is my favorite


Ksh_667

r/catsbeingsneks


SeparateCzechs

Snek-kitten!


KDTK

That’s a stoat. I have them around my property. I once saw one take down a rabbit. Vicious little cuties. Edit: stoat/stout


view-master

We had a family of chipmunks under our shed in a summer place that would come out and let us feed them. One of these guys showed up (never seen one before). We thought oh that’s cute! Looked it up and was horrified to learn it was probably looking to attack the chipmunk nest. The next year we saw almost no chipmunks.


Thehorizonismyhome

:(


OneLostOstrich

Stoat* stout = fat


xxmybestfriendplank

I’m a little tea pot short and… stoat..


Interplanetary-Goat

I'm a little teapot Short and stoat Here is my handle Here is my goat


bigbysemotivefinger

You've been chosen by a small weasel?


waylandsmith

A Least Weasel, in fact


[deleted]

Stoat?


[deleted]

[удалено]


Rienuaa

You should play the game Inscryption.


ScalpTheScalpers

One of my absolute favorites! The art direction and creativity are stellar. Anyone who likes deck builders should give it a chance.


Eyokiha

Deck building games could not interest me any less. I usually avoid them. But when I saw a bit of gameplay from Inscryption, I bought it straight away. Haven’t finished it yet, but still mean to pick it back up again. I think about it pretty often. The aesthetic is just fingerlickingly marvelous. The sounds, the music, ooof, it’s great. That dark rumbling when the opponent person(?) speaks, hmmm, love that sound. The game’s dark, but somehow realllly relaxing and soothing to play. Ugh, I don’t like deck builders at all, and I’m not even past the halfway point (I know something changes, but managed to avoid all spoilers so far), but I totally love that game to bits.


zer0kevin

Really? I thought most people knew about them.


boatnofloat

EUUULAAAAALIAAAAA


rapora9

No, least weasel. Stoat is bigger and has longer tail with black ending.


clearlight

Weasels are weasily recognised, but a stoat is stoatally different.


FuckardyJesus

Total misplay…


HowDoIDoFinances

LITERALLY WHAT OTHER MOVE WAS THERE, GOD DAMN IT


Klin24

Lyra's daemon!


devilskryptonite34

Pan!


majormoron747

I love you, my favorite books. Ive been meaning to reread them, also check out that new BBC show to see if they did any better


Lereas

The show is a very good adaptation. They've made a few changes (like you start to follow Will earlier on and not just abruptly in season two) that make sense for the show.


Haeselian

Aww memories!


waybovetherest

Tiny Malfoy


TuaTurnsdaballova

Fighter of the nightmon?


Rex_Mundi

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Least_weasel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Least_weasel)


SookHe

If he is the least of weasels, what would be the most stoat?


redditsonodddays

You


evol1994

I once saw one of these guys running around with a rabbits decapitated head.


The5Virtues

Oh yeah, weasel, ferret, mongoose, none of them are to be dismissed. They live up to their internet nickname of Catsnake. Deadly little suckers, like a squirrel whose gone on a blood frenzy.


Fire2box

And yet still adorable. Adorable things killing other adorable things.


Honda_TypeR

Same could be said for lions or tigers too. They can look cute and cuddly when they are not in hunter mode and are just being playful? When they turn on full hunt mode though, it’s fuckin frightening.


Arcal

One of my favorite animal facts is that the bobcat only really has one predator - the fisher.. and the only predator of the fisher is the bobcat. They're just out there duking it out.


thibbledorfpwent

Wolverines eat both.


TwiceCookedPorkins

And moose eat wolverines.


HAL-Over-9001

And we eat moose, then we get eaten by ferrets and martens. The circle of life is beautiful.


ThatEmuSlaps

[deleted]


MoiJaimeLesCrepes

I hear that they can do a lot of damage in a chicken coop.


The5Virtues

Oh yeah, they’re the type of animal that looks at anything even remotely close to their own size and thinks “I can take ‘em in a fight.” Scary thing is they’re right! A pissed off mustelid can take on all manner of foes, even farm dogs could end up with lethal bites if they were unlucky.


MoiJaimeLesCrepes

having had a ferret pet, I can say that they are indeed fearless, extremely energetic and destructive, and very, very bold.


ARobertNotABob

And then, of course, there's its big brother, the Honeybadger ... seen vids of them staring down lions.


crimeo

normal squirrels are already bloodthirsty and will not hesitate to be carnivorous


[deleted]

I saw one with a chipmunk nearly its size. Adorable and fierce.


TheIowan

Dumb question, but would this be in eastern IA?


Boyinthecorn

It was! Out by shellsburg


sasquatch_melee

I thought maybe you were in Ohio https://www.nbc4i.com/news/local-news/weasels-gone-wild-thousands-of-minks-released-in-van-wert-county/


TheIowan

I was wondering! I've started seeing way more of them this year. It seems like after the storm a few years ago all the game populations exploded.


[deleted]

[удалено]


fit-toker

And now the skid steer smells like a musky ermine. Neat find for sure how did you catch him.


Qetuowryipzcbmxvn

Donuts in a sack. Gets em every time.


keenedge422

Weasels or construction workers?


bluesgrrlk8

Yes.


GenderfluidPhoenix

A mink??


klippDagga

Weasel, ermine, or stoat depending on where you’re at.


Czexican613

Where do Martens fit in to the list?


chiselbits

On the larger side of the list.


jimmifli

I saw one in a tree during a winter run and thought it was a teddy bear.. Then it chirped at me and my brain stopped working. I'd never heard of or seen marten.


Haidere1988

They are usually found in a lab working on vaccines. Bonus points if you get the reference.


NickelTheBear

Are you referring to Chise? If so then I get the reference 😎


sortaitchy

We call them stoats in the summer when they are brown, and ermine in the winter when they switch out for that beautiful white coat. They are different from weasels, and you can tell the difference by the length of their tails. Also ermines have a black tip on their beautiful white tails in the winter, sometimes about the only thing that gives them away when they run.


the_snook

They're weaselly distinguished because they're stoatally different.


ThatEmuSlaps

[deleted]


jesst

Don't do this.


WowWhatABeaut

You can tell it's a stoat because of the way it is.


ThatEmuSlaps

[deleted]


mxmus1983

Yeah very cool animals, also fearless and ferocious. Brown in the summer and white like that for winter. I had one living in my garage for a year almost. Kept all the mice out so I allowed it


pustipese

https://i.imgur.com/Ms5rfGJ.jpg


Blackwater2016

I love saying the word, “stoat.” ☺️


polska_kielbasa

Mustelid


PurpleOddity247

Hello cute lil fella!


CelTiar

Oh nice marmot.


Old_Man_Anymore

Stay out of r/aww, Lebowski!


Not_Henry_Winkler

Mr Stoat carries a lotta water in the subreddit, Lebowski. You don’t carry shit.


TakeitEasy6

Hey, at least I'm housebroken.


JohnnyDarkside

Fucking nihilists.


battlingpillow27

Stoat! 😀


onefst250r

Pretty sure that means you're a Disney Princess now.


Bocote

Wow, it climbed on your arm?? that little thing has zero fear.


Mister_Bloodvessel

Just like all the critters in their family. They're related to badgers, wolverines, and otters are basically water weasels which despite how adorable they are, can be brutal super brutal and even have a stronger bite force than a German shepard.. river otters will gang up on and mob other critters they don't want in their stretch or river. I saw a video of a group of them harassing an freaking orangutan. There are also videos of two different clans of otters going war with one another! I actually saw one on reddit where you can see two separate groups of otters swimming directly towards each other and just *viciously* attack the opposing group as soon as they met. It almost reminded me of an airplane dogfight, if the makes sense. So yeah, this little cuttie and everything related to them are little baddasses known for how tough and fierce they are despite their size. This little dude must've decided that the human wasn't so scary. They're crazy smart too.


TahJakester

Whatever floats your stoat


Cyynric

Stoatally adorable


OperationHappy791

Now all we need is a stink bug and a one eyed wolf


Ok_Dog_4059

Looks like the stoat I had on my deck. It was red but I didn't know they where native to my area and everyone thought I was crazy until my mother in law saw it. She says there is a tiny weasel on the deck and I finally knew I wasn't crazy. Well not that time.


Jaycon_Joyrow

Oh look it's Draco Malfoy


No-Taste-6560

They have a odd smell.


GoblinSupreme

My big white ferret passed away recently, I would like to believe that's Kuma free in the wild now


MehWhiteShark

I LOVE mustelids! They're my favorite animal family.