Yes, really.

Sure, metal music can scare away some pop fanatics who aren't used to its intense nature, but did you know it also has the power to scare away wild animals in actual life-threatening situations?

A Canadian woman by the name of Dee Gallant was recently on a walk when she was faced with a wild cougar who'd been stalking her, in a video uploaded on July 23. To scare it away, she played "Don't Tread on Me" by Metallica on her phone, and it actually worked.

Gallant was with her husky Murphy when they were faced with the fierce cat. “I looked over to the right and there it was. I couldn’t make it out at first and thought, ‘Oh that is a strange colour, that’s not a tree,’” she told Kelowna Now.

“It was crouched down, doing that kind of prowl, predator walk that they do -- that was when I waved my arms and yelled, ‘Hey, you stop!’ and it did,” she continued.

Unfortunately that wasn't enough to scare the feline away, so Gallant had another great idea: blast the metal song. “I thought it was the noisiest thing on my phone that would probably scare it. That was also the message I wanted to convey to the cougar,” she explained.

Soon after, the cougar dashed off into the bushes, and she and her dog were safe. It's true, metal really can save lives.

Metallica is also currently on a European tour in support of their latest album, Hardwired... To Self Destruct.

Check out some footage of the cougar below.