Comedienne Ellen DeGeneres and her actress wife Portia De Rossi have dismissed reports suggesting a domestic dispute prompted the cancellation of an appearance at a Los Angeles fundraiser on Sunday, insisting they were never scheduled to attend in the first place.

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Reports suggested the stars had been en route to the Saving Spot! pet rescue event when they became embroiled in a heated argument and decided to turn around and head home.

However, the couple has now cleared up the false rumours, blaming event organisers for misleading guests with their amended invitation, which had not been approved by the pair.

A joint statement released to Eonline.com reads: “We were happy to lend our names as honorary chairs and the organisation was always aware that we would be unable to attend.

“This is the first time we have seen our images attached to the invite. It was not approved and it is misleading.”

Animal lovers DeGeneres and de Rossi appeared at last year’s fundraiser and also helped to host a live auction.