Crossword Genius

Cunning little animal hid at the back (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

shrewd

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'cunning' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'little animal hid at the back' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'animal' could be 'shrew' (shrew is a kind of animal) and 'shrew' is located in the answer.
A single letter 'd' remains which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for shrewd that I've seen before include "Cunning" , "Fly" , "Penetrating" , "Sharp-witted" , "... knowing" .)

I've seen this clue in The Sunday Times.
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