East Lyme's Pet Groundhog

For those of you who put about as much stock in the predictions of groundhogs as you do in meteorologists, here's some encouraging news. Lil' Hog, a groundhog that has taken up residence in a garden in East Lyme, was out Wednesday merrily munching on a feast of fresh vegetables as if fully convinced that spring was on its way. 

Homeowner Sandra Bullock (yes, really—but no relation) said his mother had a litter of four about three seasons ago, but Lil' Hog was the runt and stuck around when his siblings took off. To keep him from foraging in her neighbors' gardens, Bullock said that she started putting out food for him. 

"He comes out at certain times of the day looking for food and, if it is not there, he will come to the front porch, standing tall and staring at the front door until he gets his food. When we have our nannies take care of our greyhound Trey and cat Molly, they also know to feed 'Lil Hog' and they have come to love him as we do," Bullock wrote in an email to Patch.   

"Although we provide food for him, he still is a 'wild' creature and can come and go as he pleases, however, he has decided for a groundhog he has it pretty good here."