The veteran has published a letter online urging Hollande to grant the Ibex goats of Haute-Savoie a 'presidential pardon' after a local official sentenced them to death in a bid to stop the spread of bacterial infection brucellosis, which has been found in goat herds in the Alpine region.

Around 400 of the animals are due to be shot.

Bardot and other animal rights campaigners argue that killing the goats will not be an effective method of disease control, and other measures, such as vaccination, should be at least considered.

In the letter, she writes, "The prefect (senior local official) has condemned to death individuals of a protected species. I call on you to grant a presidential pardon to the 400 Ibex under threat in Bargy (mountain range)."

In 2013, close to 200 goats were culled after children caught the infection from drinking unpasteurised milk.

Bardot, a tireless animal welfare campaigner, has recently written to a number of public figures in attempts to prevent the deaths of countless animals.

In July (15), she penned a note to Australia's environment minister asking him to rethink a cull of around two million of the country's feral cats, and in June (15) she wrote to fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld's cat Choupette, asking the feline to convince her owner to stop using fur in his fashion collections.