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An East Texas man was hospitalized early Thursday morning after a bullet he fired at an armadillo ricocheted back at his head, KLTV reported.

The man shot at the armadillo just before 3 a.m. on Thursday after seeing it on the freeway in the town of Marietta, Texas, according to Cass County Sheriff official.

The bullet ricocheted back at his head. The man was treated for minor injuries. Local reports are unclear as to the condition of the armadillo.

This was the second armadillo-shooting-followed-by-ricochet of the year. The first, in Georgia in April, injured the shooter’s mother-in-law. The man shot the armadillo, the bullet bounced and then passed through a fence and into her mobile home while she sat in a recliner. Her injuries were minor but the armadillo did not survive.

A Texas man was wounded after he fired a gun at an armadillo in his yard and the bullet ricocheted back to hit him in his face, the county sheriff said Friday.

Cass County Sheriff Larry Rowe said the man, who was not identified, went outside his home in Marietta, Texas, at around 3 a.m. local time Thursday morning. He spotted the armadillo on his property and opened fire.

"His wife was in the house. He went outside and took his .38 revolver and shot three times at the armadillo," Rowe said.

The animal's hard shell deflected at least one of three bullets, which then struck the man's jaw, he said.

The man was airlifted to a nearby hospital, where his jaw was wired shut, according to Rowe.

The status of the animal is unknown.

"We didn't find the armadillo," the sheriff said.