Authorities have confirmed that a privately owned male lion being kept at a house in Rayong is legally registered, but have ordered the owner to strengthen safety measures and improve noise control following complaints from local residents.

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The complaints came from residents in Village 3, Thepphak Community, Phe subdistrict, Mueang Rayong district, who reported concerns about a male lion being kept at a home in the middle of the community. They feared the animal could pose a serious danger if it escaped and said its roaring during the night was causing anxiety and disturbing their sleep.

On 26 June 2026, Arun Pongphaitoon, Director of the Wildlife Conservation Division at Protected Areas Regional Office 2 (Si Racha), joined officials from the Department of Provincial Administration, Ban Phe Municipality, village leaders and other relevant agencies to inspect the property after receiving the complaints.

Officials found that the owner possessed all required legal documentation for the lion. The animal had been microchipped and officially registered in accordance with government regulations. A detailed inspection of the enclosure concluded that it was highly secure and robust enough to prevent the lion from escaping.

However, inspectors found that parts of the enclosure did not have a roof. They advised the owner to install additional steel structures to seal all openings and consider fitting electric fencing around the perimeter to further improve safety for the surrounding community.

Officials also instructed the owner to ensure emergency equipment, including an electric baton, fire extinguisher and warning system, remained readily available. They confirmed these items had already been provided appropriately.

Despite the official assessment, local residents said they remained worried because lions are dangerous animals and any unexpected incident could have severe consequences. They called for regular inspections to ensure safety standards continue to be met.

The inspection also addressed complaints about the lion’s roaring during the night. Although the owner had already built a soundproof room, officials recommended further improvements to increase its effectiveness and reduce the impact on nearby residents.

The Daily News reported that authorities said they will closely monitor the owner’s progress and conduct a follow-up inspection to ensure all recommended improvements have been completed.

Pictures courtesy of Daily News

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Adapted by ASEAN Now Dailynews 28 June 2026

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Just your average day in Thailand: Checking the neighbor's lion paperwork.

The owner presumably has a few powerful friends. It will be okay until it eats it;s first child. What a silly place Thailand can be!

If it's not pitbulls, it's lions.....

Hopefully it will get hungry one night !

3 hours ago, jacko45k said:

The owner presumably has a few powerful friends. It will be okay until it eats it;s first child. What a silly place Thailand can be!

Second child. First child on tapas plate will result in 5k baht fine, apology and promise to do better

I actually think it would be pretty cool to hear a lion roar at night! She's a beautiful creature, apparently well-cared for.

What bothers me is the prison aspect. If you have such a lovely companion, how can you enjoy its company if you keep it in a cage?

Compassion would be to set her free in a safe place. Perhaps she couldn't live free if raised a captivity.

All for showing off! Planet of the Apes was right--humans belong in cages.

10 minutes ago, unblocktheplanet said:

I actually think it would be pretty cool to hear a lion roar at night! She's a beautiful creature, apparently well-cared for.

What bothers me is the prison aspect. If you have such a lovely companion, how can you enjoy its company if you keep it in a cage?

Compassion would be to set her free in a safe place. Perhaps she couldn't live free if raised a captivity.

All for showing off! Planet of the Apes was right--humans belong in cages.

Thailand never ceases to amaze me - the level of utter fluckwittery on display is truly impressive sometimes.

Firstly, that someone is keeping an apex predator in the middle of a residential neighbourhood is almost unbelievable. Secondly, that the authorities permit it at all is even more astonishing.

This simply shouldn't be a matter of whether the enclosure is "good enough" or whether another layer of steel mesh or an electric fence should be added after neighbours complain. An apex predator has absolutely no place in a residential community.

The law should be crystal clear. Lions, tigers and other dangerous wild animals should only be permitted in properly licensed zoos, safari parks or wildlife reserves with the space, infrastructure, trained staff and emergency planning to deal with the consequences when something inevitably goes wrong.

The entire concept is absurd. No family should have to wonder whether the roaring they hear at night is coming from the neighbour's garden, nor should they have to trust that every lock, every gate and every human involved will perform flawlessly forever.

Some things simply should not be legal. Keeping an apex predator in a residential area is one of them.

4 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

Thailand never ceases to amaze me - the level of utter fluckwittery on display is truly impressive sometimes.

Firstly, that someone is keeping an apex predator in the middle of a residential neighbourhood is almost unbelievable. Secondly, that the authorities permit it at all is even more astonishing.

This simply shouldn't be a matter of whether the enclosure is "good enough" or whether another layer of steel mesh or an electric fence should be added after neighbours complain. An apex predator has absolutely no place in a residential community.

The law should be crystal clear. Lions, tigers and other dangerous wild animals should only be permitted in properly licensed zoos, safari parks or wildlife reserves with the space, infrastructure, trained staff and emergency planning to deal with the consequences when something inevitably goes wrong.

The entire concept is absurd. No family should have to wonder whether the roaring they hear at night is coming from the neighbour's garden, nor should they have to trust that every lock, every gate and every human involved will perform flawlessly forever.

Some things simply should not be legal. Keeping an apex predator in a residential area is one of them.

Smell the outrage! Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!

In what world can this be seen as acceptable?

I also read there's more tigers in private residences in the US than in the wild......people are mental.

32 minutes ago, unblocktheplanet said:

Smell the outrage! Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!

Relax - my response wasn't a personal insult - just commentary that wild apex predators shouldn't be living next door to us.

If you really like the sound of lions roar - move next to Safari world - or I can give you tips for the frisky missus !

9 minutes ago, MIke B Bad said:

I also read there's more tigers in private residences in the US than in the wild......people are mental.

Oddly... that doesn't surprise me in the least...

Not oddly, actually - it just doesn't surprise me in the least !!!

I bet those same 'tiger' owners - also have at least 5 assault weapons... and one of 'ems defo a doomsday prepper !

2 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

Relax - my response wasn't a personal insult - just commentary that wild apex predators shouldn't be living next door to us.

If you really like the sound of lions roar - move next to Safari world - or I can give you tips for the frisky missus !

Cool! When I was living in Kathmandu, I was very close to the Jawalakhel Zoo. Those peacocks!

26 minutes ago, unblocktheplanet said:

Cool! When I was living in Kathmandu, I was very close to the Jawalakhel Zoo. Those peacocks!

Oh, that's nothing. When I was living in the Autonomous People's Republic of Upper West Equatoria, I'd wake every morning to the unmistakable mating call of the Albanian tree walrus. Magical.

12 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

Oh, that's nothing. When I was living in the Autonomous People's Republic of Upper West Equatoria, I'd wake every morning to the unmistakable mating call of the Albanian tree walrus. Magical.

I was not saying the peacocks were magical, just loud as a damned lion. Location included for reference. Only place I've seen peacocks in Thailand is in the gardens of that beautiful Siam Intercontinental, replaced by just another mall.

Are you being demeaning for any particular reason?

1 hour ago, unblocktheplanet said:

13 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

Oh, that's nothing. When I was living in the Autonomous People's Republic of Upper West Equatoria, I'd wake every morning to the unmistakable mating call of the Albanian tree walrus. Magical.

I was not saying the peacocks were magical, just loud as a damned lion. Location included for reference. Only place I've seen peacocks in Thailand is in the gardens of that beautiful Siam Intercontinental, replaced by just another mall.

Are you being demeaning for any particular reason?

Nooo... not demeaning in the slightest. I think you've simply read a tone into it that wasn't there.

The clue was that the Autonomous People's Republic of Upper West Equatoria doesn't exist... nor does the Albanian tree walrus. It was just an absurd spoof, poking fun at the inevitable "well, when I lived in..." one-upmanship that crops up in forum discussions - I figured you'd see the humorous side.

As for the actual topic, I completely agree with you about the old Siam Intercontinental. It was a beautiful hotel with magnificent gardens and real character. Knocking it down for yet another shopping mall was a genuine loss. Some buildings deserve preserving simply because they give a city its identity.

I've seen peacocks kept on large private estates in Thailand - and they are impressive. They're noisy, but common sense draws a fairly obvious distinction between an ornamental bird wandering around a garden and an apex predator capable of killing someone. That's a clear common sense line, and where the law should draw it too.

14 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

14 hours ago, unblocktheplanet said:

Cool! When I was living in Kathmandu, I was very close to the Jawalakhel Zoo. Those peacocks!

Oh, that's nothing. When I was living in the Autonomous People's Republic of Upper West Equatoria, I'd wake every morning to the unmistakable mating call of the Albanian tree walrus. Magical.

For PJ71 who appears confused...

Not just the above, but this discussion also takes me back to my time in the Sultanate of North Lower Transnistria. Nothing beats drifting off to sleep with the gentle roar of the Arctic Jungle Hippo....

3 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

Nooo... not demeaning in the slightest. I think you've simply read a tone into it that wasn't there.

The clue was that the Autonomous People's Republic of Upper West Equatoria doesn't exist... nor does the Albanian tree walrus. It was just an absurd spoof, poking fun at the inevitable "well, when I lived in..." one-upmanship that crops up in forum discussions - I figured you'd see the humorous side.

As for the actual topic, I completely agree with you about the old Siam Intercontinental. It was a beautiful hotel with magnificent gardens and real character. Knocking it down for yet another shopping mall was a genuine loss. Some buildings deserve preserving simply because they give a city its identity.

I've seen peacocks kept on large private estates in Thailand - and they are impressive. They're noisy, but common sense draws a fairly obvious distinction between an ornamental bird wandering around a garden and an apex predator capable of killing someone. That's a clear common sense line, and where the law should draw it too.

Sorry to have misunderstood The peacocks were too damned real!

I'm not much of a braggart and, to be honest, I haven't much noticed it in other posters. I certainly do have a closetful of anecdotes from a sometimes too colourful life. Some of them may be recounted here!

Wow, private estates with peacocks--now that's really cool! No lions?

8 minutes ago, unblocktheplanet said:

Wow, private estates with peacocks--now that's really cool! No lions?

Nope - no lions - thats why the peacocks were still there !