Watch a Bird Release on World Animal Day!

I am a Dawn Saves Wildlife ambassador. All opinions are my own. 

We have all seen them: the Dawn commercials showing adorable, fluffy little ducks being rescued from oil spills, being washed with Dawn dish detergent and then being released back into the wild. I cry every time I see those commercials. Ever single time. After spending a day a The Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito last week, I saw firsthand how hard volunteers work to save and rehabilitate wildlife - we even had a visit from a representative from the International Bird Rescue, which is to the aviary world what the TMMC is to marine mammals!

In honor of World Animal Day, I wanted to share a little with you about the importance of volunteerism. Where would our wildlife centers be without their volunteers? The Marine Mammal Center and the International Bird Rescue center are largely made up of volunteers

Dawn's motto in the world of wildlife is "Tough on grease, gentle on fur and feathers," and this was actually realized at the International Bird Rescue in 1978 (hey, that's not THAT long ago...it was the year I was born!), when they received a grant that allowed them to test every major dish soap to see which one was best for cleaning birds. As you can probably guess from the title of this post, Dawn was deemed to be the most effective - while being the most gentle - at removing grease and oil while still being gentle on birds. That is when Dawn began donating to wildlife rescue - the rest, as they say, is history!

To date, Dawn has donated over 50,000 bottles of dish detergent to wildlife centers, as well as $4.5 million dollars!

The International Bird Rescue has partnered with Dawn for a Day in the Wildlife event, much like the Day in the Wildlife event I attended last month with TMMC in Sausalito. While I wasn't there to personally attend this event, I was able to follow along on social media and I have an awesome photo of a pelican being released back into the wild to share with you today!

Dawn’s “Day in the Wildlife” event spotlighted the vital role that International Bird Rescue (IBR) and The Marine Mammal Center play in the health and wellness of marine animals worldwide.

Together with hundreds of partners across the globe, there are nearly 100,000 volunteers serving on a daily basis saving the lives of tens of thousands of animals each year. When the issue involves oil spills, these partners rely on Dawn to get the animals clean because it’s soft on feathers and tough on grease. The World Animal Day celebration was attended by animal advocates and hosted at the IBR in San Pedro, Calif., on October 2, and included the release of nine rehabilitated birds back into the wild, including a California Brown Pelican.

People can view Dawn’s Virtual Volunteer videos for a firsthand perspective on a day in the life of a volunteer rescue worker helping save oiled animals in need.

You can even check out this YouTube video to watch a bird release!