Doris Day's 90th birthday is 'all about the four-leggers'

Doris Day mark her 90th birthday in April with a bash in Carmel, Calif. with an auction to support the nonprofit Doris Day Animal Foundation.

Screen legend Doris Day is celebrating a landmark birthday with an auction to benefit her favorite cause: animals.

A spokesman for Ms. Day said Tuesday the nonprofit Doris Day Animal Foundation will mark her 90th birthday in April with a bash in Carmel, Calif.

A sold-out fundraising celebration at Day's Cypress Inn will include a doggie fashion show, adoption event and an April 4 tribute dinner for fans and friends.

Items autographed by Day and celebrity pals including Paul McCartney and Tony Bennett will be auctioned off online and at the dinner. Online bidding ends April 1.

In a statement, Day said she doesn't care much for celebrating birthdays with cards or gifts, inviting fans to help animals instead. As Day put it: "I'm all about the four-leggers."

This past February, the Doris Day Animal Foundation celebrated the 20th anniversary of “World Spay Day,” a day when pet owners are encouraged to get their pets spayed or neutered to support population control and keep animals out of shelters. According to the worldspayday.org web site, “More than 800 events were held around the world throughout February, Spay/Neuter Awareness Month, in honor of the 20th World Spay Day.”

Among other causes, the foundation promotes horse rescues, supporting families who adopt senior and special-needs dogs, and provides grants to smaller animal support and rescue operations around the country, among other activities.

Day was born on April 3, 1924, spokesman Charley Walters said, although other sources list her birth year as 1923. As a teenager, she sometimes provided different ages to get work and that may have led to confusion, Walters said.

Day starred in more than three dozen films from the 1940s to the 1960s, including "Pillow Talk" and "Calamity Jane," and recorded hit songs including "Que Sera, Sera." She released the compilation album "My Heart" in 2011.

She lives in the seaside city of Carmel in Northern California and has devoted herself to animal welfare since stepping out of show business.

"There is so much work still to do to rescue animals, and to inform people about the importance of spaying and neutering their pets," Day said.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.