DENVER (KDVR) An anonymous donor is paying to spay and neuter 120 pit bulls at the Denver Animal Shelter.

The donor is hoping to help pit bull owners who can’t afford to spay and neuter. Those people will also get a $100 grocery gift card during the event, which starts this Saturday.

“We’re looking at 120 dogs altogether, so 30 a weekend for four weekends, and that’s starting this weekend,” said Denver Animal Shelter’s Community Navigator Aidan McMorrow. “Costs can be really high for even the most basic procedures, so what we’re trying to do is just make sure that everybody’s got equal access to the resources they need to do right by their pet.”

McMorrow told affiliate KDVR the shelter has recently seen more pit bulls up for adoption.

“We see just a huge number of pit bulls coming into the shelter and staying longer,” McMorrow said. “Part of that could be tied to that bias that certain people might have about the breed. There are also factors like pit bulls having generally. Larger litters than other dogs.”

The Denver Animal Shelter said there’s already a waitlist after the first weekend, with many expressing interest in the opportunity. 

Byron Taylor, director of the National Dog Rescue Network, works to get breed-specific legislation repealed in cities.

“The fact that it’s only pits is OK because you’ll find donors that do this for Dobermans, for all different kinds of breeds out there,” Taylor said. “That kind of responsibility focused on the pit bull community, I think can be good for a lot of people to understand, pit owners really do want neutering and spaying, and they really do want responsible ownership.”

The Denver Animal Shelter is also putting on another event tied to pit bulls — the St. Pitty’s Day Pub Crawl and Adoption Special. Adoption fees for pit pulls over six months old will be $17 for the month of March. The pub crawl is on Saturday, with a t-shirt for purchase that will get attendees deals for the event. You can find more information on the Denver Animal Shelter website.