A hungry snow leopard was filmed as it came down a mountain, apparently hoping to make a meal out of a shepherd’s herd but was met by his six fearless dogs that chased it off.

Thrilling footage captured by the unnamed shepherd shows the cat-dog standoff taking place in the pastures near Agexiang Village, near the city of Kuqa, in north-western China’s Xinjiang Region.

The ferocious animal had reportedly descended from the mountain in search of food and entered the pasture area, where six shepherd dogs spotted it.

In the video, the leopard is seen perched up on a rock as it appears to be growling at the pack of dogs.

But seemingly undeterred by its full set of teeth and deadly claws, they confronted the wild cat by continuously barking at it.

The standoff reportedly lasted for about three minutes before the big cat ran off without its desired prey.

The snow leopard (Panthera uncia) is a species of large cat that inhabits the alpine and subalpine zones at elevations of 9,800–14,800 feet in Central and South Asia.

It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, and it is mainly threatened by poaching and habitat destruction.