The Woman Who Shooed a Cougar with Metallica Thanked James Hetfield for Saving Her Life

Hetfield called the Vancouver Island woman last week

BY Calum SlingerlandPublished Aug 6, 2019

Metallica's music was discovered to be suitable predator repellent last week when a Vancouver Island woman went viral for recounting how she scared off a cougar by blaring the band's music, and Dee Gallant got the opportunity to thank frontman James Hetfield for saving her life.

As CTV News reports, Gallant got a call from a band liaison before the long weekend who told her to expect a call from the group shortly. As it happened, Hetfield was the voice on the other end of the line.

"I was a little bit lost for words," Gallant told the broadcaster Monday (August 5). "It's surreal how quickly it happened and how far it's gone. The fact that he's so down to earth and such a great person, I'm very pleased to find that out first-hand."

Gallant made headlines last week for being approached by a cougar while hiking with her dog in British Columbia's Cowichan Valley. She successfully scared it off by blaring Metallica's "Don't Tread On Me," which appeared on the band's 1991 self-titled LP.

Hetfield and Gallant spoke about their Vancouver Island and California homes, and their pets. "I can't believe he knows my dog's name," Gallant said. "If you had told the 18-year-old me that this would happen, I never would've believed it. I would've just fallen out of my skin with excitement."

After the phone call ended, Hetfield sent along a selfie — metal horns and all — for "some confirmation that it was me." You can find that in the player below.

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