Moment zoo guest nearly pays the ultimate price for teasing bear with rice

The 36-year-old’s life changed irrevocably when he visited a remote temple in rural Thailand to see a ‘buffalo bear’ living in a small enclosure with a community of monks.

Naiphum saw the powerful animal, weighing 250kg, stuck in a small space for feeding – and decided to taunt it by dangling bowls of rice overhead.

But a morning out in the humid valleys of Phetchabun suddenly took a turn for the worse when the bear stood on its hind legs and dragged him down.

In an instant, Naiphum was pulled back into the enclosure, knocked unconscious and mauled, flesh torn from his chest with ease.