The Real New Zealand Festival has decided not to go ahead with a sheep run it had been planning down Auckland's Queen Street in the face of criticism from animal welfare advocates.
The Festival organisers had planned to truck in about 1000 sheep and release them down Auckland's main street during the Rugby World Cup.
But the Royal New Zealand Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals called for it to be stopped, saying the animals could become stressed.
RSPCA chief executive Robyn Kippenberger had said the organisers could be prosecuted under the Animal Welfare Act if the animals were harmed during the event.
The director of Real New Zealand, Briony Ellis, says the event will no longer be a part of the festival in light of the position of the SPCA.
