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On this cold and snowy morning in Oxford, Michigan, Tutor became
only the second llama in history to give a weather prognostication.
He was escorted out of the barn and into the daylight by his human
friend Mark. He surveyed his pasture from the top of the hill and
communicated to Mark that he did NOT see his shadow. In memory of
Noah John and Zac, Tutor was confident in his forecast of an early
spring. When he heard that Phil HAD seen his shadow, he said simply
that he has to call it as he sees it and there was definitely NOT a
shadow today in Michigan!
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The
history of Groundhog Day
in Oxford, Michigan - In 1998, a baby groundhog was
rescued after a collision with a car. The groundhog was taken to a
local veterinary clinic where surgery was performed to save his
life. The groundhog, unable to be released back into the wild due to
his injuries, was named Noah John. He became Oxford’s beloved one-eyed
weather prognosticating groundhog. Noah passed away on April 22, 2002 as a
result of injuries sustained in the traffic accident. Before
Noah John died, he met several times with his llama friend Mr.
Prozac and instructed Zac in the art of weather prognosticating.
Zac was confident of
his abilities as he stepped up into Oxford’s Centennial Park
gazebo each year. When asked, he informed his handler Mark Harries,
if he saw his shadow and that in memory of Noah, Zac gave his
prediction.
Zac's
predictions were covered by local television and newspapers as well
as newspapers around the world. As time passed, Zac's prediction was
moved from the center of town in Oxford to his home in Oxford
Township. On April 26, 2009, Zac passed away from a severe bout of
peritonitis. Before Zac passed away, he appointed a protoge` to
continue the Groundhog Day tradition. February 2nd, 2010 will be
Tutor's first prognosticating challenge.
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