Difference Between Weasel and Ferret

Main Difference

The Weasel and Ferret are quite the same animals when it is about the shape of both these animals. Often people with no experience find it hard to differentiate it between both the mammals, which are different from each other but at the same time they are interconnected with each other. Both this animal belong to the similar scientific family, named Mustelidae. The genus Mustela includes total 17 species, out of them ten classify as Weasels, whereas ferret is the subspecies of polecats, which itself is the member of the Weasel’s family. The other big difference between both these animals is that ferrets are domesticated from around 2000 years for various purposes, on the other hand, weasels are non-domesticated animals.

Comparison Chart

What is Weasel?

The weasel belongs to the family Mustelidae and the genus Mustela; they are the mammals with long and the slender bodies that measure in between the 6.8-8.5 inches. The long and the slender bodies help them to catch their prey even into burrows. One of the biggest distinction between ferret and weasels is the tails as the latter has a lengthier tail as compared to the former. The female weasels are shorter in length as compared to the male ones’ usually they have white bellies and the red or brown upper coats. They are the predators, who manage their living on poultry from farms or the rabbits from the commercial warrens. They opt the woody areas or the dense forests to reside and hide from the big-six predators. They are infamous for damaging farms and stealing poultry. Therefore, they are not domesticated by the farmers and others. These long tales, furious mammals are diversely present across the globe except the areas like Australia and Antarctica. The weasels are seen as the clever animals, who perform a specific dance called the ‘weasel war dance’ after the competition or fight. It is also known that weasels prefer resting in safe areas, so they make nests in crevices.

What is Ferret?

The ferret belongs to the same genus as weasels; the difference comes as the ferret is the subspecies of the polecats, which belong to the similar group. With the average lifespan of 7-10 years, typically has mixed fur that has the contrast of colors like brown, black and white. They are longer in body length as compared to the weasels; they have an average length around 20 inches and the tail around 5.1 inches. Ferrets are quite popular across the globe as they are domesticated around the globe from around 2500 years for various purposes. Earlier, they were mainly used for hunting rabbits in different parts of the world, but today they are kept as pets in most parts of the world. They have quite a friendly attitude towards the humans, even beside it, several areas of the world have put a restriction on the domestication of the ferrets. They are crepuscular as they spend around 14 to 18 hours of the day sleeping. Usually, they hunt and do most of their activities in the hours of dawn and dusk.

Weasel vs. Ferret

• The genus Mustela includes total 17 species, out of them ten classify as Weasels, whereas ferret is the subspecies of polecats, which itself is the member of the Weasel’s family.
• Ferrets are domesticated from around 2000 years for various purposes, on the other hand, weasels are non-domesticated animals.
• The weasels have long and the slender bodies that measure in between the 6.8-8.5 inches. Contrary to this, ferrets have an average length around 20 inches and the tail around 5.1 inches.
• The weasel has a lengthier tail as compared to the ferrets’ tail.

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