Dawn Saves Wildlife

March 24, 1989 Joseph Jeffrey Hazelwood, who was not paying attention to his ship on autopilot either because he was drunk or sleeping, crash his ship that was carrying 53 million gallons of oil into Bligh Reef in Alaska. As a result, about 11 million gallons of oil poured 1100 miles in the water off the Alaskan coast. The spill killed 250, 000 seabirds, 4,000 sea otters, 250 bald eagles, and more than 20 killer whales (according to WWF). Twenty years later, 21,000 gallons of that oil remains on the shores and many of the species have not yet recovered (March 2009). Although it wasn’t the largest oil spill in history, it was definitely one of the most devastating human-caused environmental disasters ever to occur at sea.


The Exxon Valdez spill is the 35th worst oil spill in history. It was an unsettling spill, still being cleaned today; but what’s even more unsettling is that there are 34 oil spills that are even worse.






June 23, 2000 another oil ship sank off the coast of South Africa, which supports the largest colonies of African Penguins. The worldwide population of African penguins is numbers at less than 180,000 and is continuing to decrease. The ship spilled over 1,300 tons of oil, in which thousands of penguins were immersed. This oil spill has made African Penguins potentially become endangered. The International Bird Rescue Research Center has helped organize the rehabilitation of over 20,000 oiled penguins. Also, they relocated 19, 500 non-oiled penguins. Over 90% of the oiled penguins have been rehabilitated and released back to the wild.


Wildlife that comes in contact with oil pollution is at serious risk. Oil destroys the intricate layer of feathers that protect birds, exposing them to extremes in temperature. When they try to get it off with their beaks, they risk poisoning themselves–the intake of a single drop of oil can prove deadly for some birds. If the oil isn’t removed quickly, they will die.


Thankfully, Dawn thoroughly removes the oil, without harming the skin or feathers of the animal. That’s because Dawn is tough on the grease–but gentle on fur, feathers, and skin.

And now, when you purchase a bottle of Dawn dishwashing liquid and go online (www.dawnsaveswildlife.com) to activate your donation using the bottle donation code printed on your bottle, one dollar* is donated to organizations like The Marine Mammal Center and The International Bird Rescue Research Center.