BANGKOK, Nov 10 — Thai director Sant Srikaewlaw is in hot soup after concerns of possible animal abuse happening on the set of his period drama The Empress of Ayodhaya.

Bangkok Post reported that Sant was forced to assure the public that a cat, seen being poisoned and dying in a scene, was alive.

He claimed that the cat was only fed an anaesthetic for the scene that was supervised by the cat’s owner and experts, even putting up clips on Facebook of the black cat to prove it was alive an well.

Sant also said he would be taking the cat for a checkup with a report proving its health condition was satisfactory.

The Veterinary Council of Thailand confirmed it was aware of the situation and would be taking relevant action.

As of press time, however, Sant has closed off most of his Facebook page including the video of the cat.

The Empress of Ayodhyaya has been receiving positive buzz lately with it rating 3.089 for the pilot, a rating debut record for One31 network show first/pilot episodes.

Curios about the show? Watch the trailer below: