Festival organisers introduced costume restrictions last spring, citing repeated incidents involving fursuit wearers and accusing some of making patrons uncomfortable, staging unauthorised performances and refusing to cooperate with staff.

President Jules Smith Jr said: “We don’t want them performing,” adding that fursuit wearers were “constantly engaging other customers.”

The festival, celebrating its 50th anniversary, has also faced complaints about other off-theme costumes, including Star Wars stormtroopers and inflatable dinosaurs.

Furry attendees say the costumes are generally used for self-expression – and not sexual activity. Ashton Hawthorne, who attends the festival as an orange-maned wolf, said: “I’m not there to perform. I’m not there to make a spectacle of myself. I’m there to exist in the space in a way that makes me happy.”

Some regular attendees support the restrictions, saying the event has become too much like a fantasy convention.

Ash Delmonico, who portrays a green deer, said: “It becomes a slippery slope.”