A German animal welfarecharity has launched an ad campaign for pet de-sexing that features scandal-hit Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi next to the slogan "Too much sex can be a bad thing ... for dogs and cats too."

The aging lothario became the latest in a line of famous faces to feature in a postercampaign by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals' (PETA) German affiliate.

Previous libido lovers who starred in the ads included porn actresses Jenna Jameson, Ron Jeremy and Sasha Grey and womanisng golf pro Tiger Woods.

"Il Cavaliere [The Knight, a nickname for Berlusconi] can do a great service by encouraging everyone to have their dogs and cats desexed ... The hundreds of thousands of homeless strays in Italy don't make headlines as Berlusconi does, but they need people to pay attention to the crisis their casual sex is causing," PETA spokeswoman Mimi Bekhechi said.

Despite the fact that Berlusconi did not endorse the ad, PETA said that "the image and the idea were too good to pass up when it comes to helping find homes for animals who will otherwise be left out in the cold."

The prime minister was scheduled to stand trial in April on charges of abusing his power and paying for sex with a 17-year-old girl, in a scandal that dominated his premiership in recent months.

It was alleged that the 74 year old paid for sex with nightclub dancer Karima El Mahroug, known as "Ruby the Heart-Stealer," and then improperly used his position by asking Milan police to release the Moroccan dancer after she was picked up for suspected theft, saying she was the granddaughter of Egypt's then-president Hosni Mubarak.

Berlusconi maintains that he has not broken the law.