The SeaWorld San Diego Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation Program and Oiled Wildlife Care Center give marine animals a second chance at life.

In keeping with the park's commitment to education, conservation and research, team members in the park's mammal, bird and fish departments rescue and rehabilitate marine animals that strand or become involved in an oil spill.

Rescued animals provide a wealth of information to SeaWorld animal care specialists because the animals help them more fully understand the biology of marine life and potential diseases and disasters that affect their natural environment.

Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation Program
Since 1965, SeaWorld San Diego has rescued thousands of animals and has treated as many as 475 marine mammals in one year. Of these animals, pinnipeds (seals and sea lions), form the largest percentage.

SeaWorld is part of the Southwest Marine Mammal Stranding Network, which is organized by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). Members of the public, lifeguards and other individuals report strandings to SeaWorld's rescue hotline (800-541-SEAL) and SeaWorld team members respond, using guidelines governed by NMFS. Once rescued, animals are nursed back to health and returned to the wild by a team of experts. If an animal is deemed not releasable, NMFS determines whether the animal is to remain at SeaWorld or to be cared for at another facility.

Marine mammals such as seals, sea lions, sea otters, dolphins, whales, manatees, sea turtles and seabirds may strand for a variety of reasons: illness, injury, exhaustion or separation from their mother. Two of the most common illnesses are malnutrition and dehydration. In addition, animals may also become entangled in nets, ropes or fishing line; accidentally ingest plastic or other foreign objects; or suffer habitat loss, which occurs as a result of human development, over harvesting of natural resources or oil spills.

To care for stranded animals, SeaWorld San Diego is equipped with a state-of-the-art medical facility, which houses a laboratory with the latest diagnostic equipment, antibiotics, intravenous fluids and other medications; a surgical suite, which contains a custom surgery table, X-ray, ultrasound, endoscopy and anesthesia equipment; a food preparation room, where special diets for rehabilitated animals are prepared; and recovery areas, including pools and enclosures, tailored to meet the specific needs of each rehabilitating animal.

Once at the park, an animal's blood, urine and stool are analyzed to pinpoint health problems. Most of the rescued animals are dehydrated, underweight and require proper nutrition. Young animals that are still nursing are given a special formula. The formula is made from a milk replacer that contains 13 percent fat and 7 percent protein, which helps the animals return to normal weight.

"When animals are deemed healthy, able to forage for food and show little or no dependence on humans, they are released," said Tom Goff, curator of mammals at SeaWorld San Diego.

The most well-known of SeaWorld San Diego's successful rehabilitations is J.J. the gray whale. On January 10, 1997, a dehydrated, hypoglycemic and comatose, three-day-old calf weighing 1,500 pounds was found off the coast of Marina del Rey, California. The calf was transported to SeaWorld where animal care specialists provided round-the-clock care for J.J. during her rehabilitation at the park. Fifteen months and nearly 20,000 pounds later, J.J. was restored to health and returned successfully back into the ocean. J.J.'s recovery allowed SeaWorld researchers many discoveries, including the creation of an infant formula, gray whale vocalization patterns and whale growth rates. Knowledge gained by caretakers and researchers at SeaWorld is also shared with other zoological parks, rescue organizations, universities and government agencies worldwide.

"The main goal of SeaWorld San Diego's Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation Program is to return rehabilitated animals to the ocean while at the same time adding to the collective knowledge regarding marine animal health and conservation," Goff said.

Endangered animals that are rescued and released, like manatees, are tracked to aid in future population surveys and to assess the effectiveness of the rescue program. Pinnipeds are also tagged should they need to be identified in the future due to another stranding.

Oiled Wildlife Care Center
SeaWorld San Diego has a separate facility, the Oiled Wildlife Care Center, that cares for animals that fall victim to oil spills.

The 8,000-square-foot center was established in 2000 by SeaWorld San Diego, the California Department of Fish and Game and the University of California, Davis. It includes examination, treatment and food preparation areas, an aviary and a 32,000-gallon rehabilitation pool that can hold 20 oiled sea otters or pinnipeds in the event of an oil spill in Southern California. The facility can treat up to 200 oiled seabirds at a time. The center is one of five regional oiled wildlife rescue and rehabilitation facilities participating in the Oiled Wildlife Care Network.

The center is staffed by team members from SeaWorld San Diego's aviculture and animal care departments who have received state certification and training to work with oiled animals. When the center is not being used for oil spill rescue, it houses rehabilitating seabirds including pelicans from the Salton Sea.