A mayor in Wisconsin has learned a painful lesson about having rodents too close to your face.

Monday was Groundhog Day and throughout the country, these cute furry beasts are pulled from their natural habitat to predict a longer winter or an early spring.

One groundhog in the town of Sun Prairie didn't want anything to do with this tradition as it promptly bit the mayor in the ear. It would appear that the handler was holding the groundhog a little too close to the Mayor Jonathan Freund's face.

By the way, according to the official mayoral proclamation, the groundhog did not see his shadow so an early spring is imminent - or perhaps spring will be BLOODY EARly this year.

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