Spay-neuter is available to Whidbey Island pit bulls and pit bull mixes. Owners are asked to pay what they can.

Who’s eligible? Anyone who lives on Whidbey and meets applicable income guidelines.

Both adults and puppies can go. Puppies must be at least three months old and weigh at least three pounds.

Whidbey Spay Neuter Transport takes the dogs to The N.O.A.H. Center’s  spay-neuter clinic in Stanwood. The dogs come home the same day.

Reservations are required. For more information about income guidelines, making reservations, and the spay-neuter project, call 360-202-0547 or email whidbeysnt@gmail.com. Spanish speakers can call 425-232-2326.

More information about The N.O.A.H. Center can be found at www.thenoahcenter.org.

The project emphasizes pit bulls and pit bull mixes because they are considered at-risk companion animals: They make up a disproportionate number of dogs in shelters and of dogs euthanized in shelters. Even dogs deemed adoptable can wait for many months in shelters and rescues. On Whidbey, very few have a chance of finding homes through the Island’s shelters and pit bull rescue.

Spaying and neutering can improve a dog’s  health as it reduces the risk of certain types of cancers and infections, especially if performed before the first heat in females and before puberty in males.