Photographer's "Finding Trust" Photos Reveal The Spirit Of Wild Animals In Need

What inspired you to document the work at the Sarvey Wildlife Care Center? 

ANSWER:

It feels that Sarvey found me, in a way. I found an injured pigeon on the street in Seattle and called 911. It was late, around 10 p.m., and a man drove about 65 miles from the center to come pick it up and bring it back to the center. I told him I wanted to work there, and he said, “Come on up. We need tons of volunteers.”

I started working there once a week, and I was so captivated by everything I was experiencing at Sarvey. My second week there, my boss Sue asked if I would hold an eagle while she tube-fed it. I was like "OMG, I’m going to hold an eagle!" She gently showed me how to hold its talons and its body so that it felt safe. I think feeling that power coming from inside that eagle’s body was one of the most incredible feelings I’ve had up to this point. 

The more I was around these animals, the more I saw their inner beauty and intelligence, and the more frustrated I became by our world and how much of nature is neglected or destroyed. I believe the wild creatures among us embody the instinct and love we have lost, and with this I realized more and more the purpose of my work.

I was overwhelmed with inspiration coming from every corner of that place.

What role have animals played in your life? 

ANSWER:

I have a really strong memory of getting mad at my amazingly gentle artist father when he held our cats too tight or called them “he” when they were a “she.” I think I always felt that every animal is important and should be treated as we would want ourselves to be. I believed, and still do, that we are all the same.

I was in 4-H with my dog and cat for several years. I even won grand champion at the Washington State Fair when I dressed my cat Winston Churchill up as a hippie. He had bell bottoms and a '70s shirt. It was a hit! My mom worked at a vet clinic, and we always had at least two cats and one dog, if not more, at a time. Along with those, we had fish, hamsters, all the animals you could have in the city. I dressed my animals up when I was little, I photographed them — it was all meant to be. 

RELATED: Hear more about Musselman's time at Sarvey.

What was the most touching story you heard while at Sarvey Care Center? 

ANSWER:

There are so many amazing things that have happened there! I suppose the most remarkable of all the experiences I had at Sarvey came from a beautiful raven we called Angel who came to us at the center. She was rescued from a hoarder who had chained her inside of a cage outdoors, and so both her legs were broken and had to be set. She had likely fallen out of a nest as a baby, and the man had found her and, in his own way, rescued her. 

When she came to us, she was 2 years old. We kept her until she was four. And then in December of her second year with us, she had to be euthanized. Although we had gone to great efforts to save her life, she developed bumble foot and was in great pain. 

Angel became my very close friend. She would let me sit with her, and we would talk for hours. I would smooth her black feathers down, and she would look at me with her big, deep brown eyes. She helped me recover from a lot of the loss I had dealt with in my life. My mother had passed away a few years before I met Angel, and whenever I was with her, I felt very safe and comforted, as if I was with my mother. It was an amazing feeling. 

Ravens have the ability to adapt to the needs of the human. They can read one's body language and tone of voice, and respond accordingly. We presume she must have picked up her language from the man she lived with. She used to yell out "Angel! Angel!" in a very loud old man’s cigarette-laced voice. Angel picked a small few of us volunteers to become close to, and those of us who were her chosen ones will never forget what she taught us. 

How is photographing animals different from photographing humans?

ANSWER:

You can pose a human. You can tell them to move here or there, and they can make themselves look a certain way. You can relax them. But not an animal, especially one in a cage. Finding that perfect moment and arranging a background that will work with the image, the lighting, shadows and eliminating all the yuck was pretty difficult to deal with. But then you have this totally raw and unbelievable subject, with beautiful, big eyes full of wisdom and history and strength.

Having the opportunity to capture that wonder is 100 million times more exciting than photographing a human. They are very proud even if their lives have been savagely brought to halt. I’m not against human photographs, though. They are beautiful, too, and can exude strength. It’s just not the same for me.

RELATED: See more of Musselman's work

What did you learn about wild animals that you didn’t know before starting this project? 

ANSWER:

I didn’t know how I would feel in their presence, that I would feel their truth, their intelligence. I feel as humans, we have lost this simple way of living where things have become the dominant force in our lives and our true nature is left behind.

It feels amazing to be close to that wild nature. It’s quite different than being around a tame house or farm animal. It feels more frantic. With the raptors or owls, there is this huge sense of calm around them. I realize that all animals talk, of course not in our language, but they do talk, if we just listen. It’s very difficult, but very rewarding when we find that communication.

What were the challenges of doing this project?

ANSWER:

I struggled with this project in many ways. Most importantly, I had to get the dirty work done before I could take pictures. I cleaned cages, fed and incubated animals, cut meat, gave medications, etc. Gaining the trust of the amazing people I worked with took time, but eventually they saw that my love for these animals was huge. I struggled with harsh fluorescent lighting, limited time for pictures during moments of crisis with the animals, constant stress from sick and dying animals, all the while looking for moments to photograph the beauty around me.

What were the rewards? 

ANSWER:

The feeling that I was doing something in my life that mattered, that I had found my niche in the photo world. Also, the strong friendships I made with people at the center, and of course, with the animals. I have found a way to express my love for animals and also share it with others in hopes that they can have a more enlightened view of nature, and possibly treat animals more humanely. I hope others see that animals may be more like us than we can ever know.

RELATED: Read Musselman's blog on her photography

What can humans do to prevent injuring local wildlife?  

ANSWER:

Some accidents are unavoidable because of our close proximity to nature these days. Cities often border forests and wild lands where these animals live. We can try to drive safely, to not text or talk on the phone while driving, so our eyes are always on the road.

If you find an injured or orphaned animal, first take the time to observe the animal and its behavior. If you conclude it's definitely injured, call 911 or your local wildlife rescue and describe its condition.

Please use common sense if you need to contain the animal. It's important to remember that any wild animal will try to protect itself. This is a natural reaction. Don't consider the animal to be vicious; it is very, very scared.

What do you want viewers to take away from these photos? 

ANSWER:

I want so badly for humans to be kinder to animals in all aspects of our lives, and I feel that the more their beauty is exposed, the more people will see something like them inside themselves.

I saw that there was this really ancient spirit that lives in all of us. A spirit that was strong, had a power for survival and was connected to the nature around us, which made us care for it. I now believe many people do not have the same spirit.

I sensed that the human world needed to come face to face with creatures in their sanctuaries.  My work is encouraged by the belief that if humans witness the innocence and beauty of these animals in my pictures, they will realize more and more what they have lost, and maybe we will stop endangering them.

Sarvey is a place where I’ve seen love, trust and intuition that equals that of a mother and child, a home where a few humans have come together to save the lives of many precious creatures. I believe we must take care of each other in order to survive. My goal is to present the very important relationship and obligation we have to these animals and to the nature that silently supports us.

Have you worked on any other animal photography projects? 

ANSWER:

Sarvey was my first animal project, but since then I have traveled to Uganda to photograph a tree project working to save the lives of animals, including chimps living in forests that border villages that are cutting down for cooking wood. I’ve photographed a Chihuahua rescue in New Mexico for Outside magazine, and most recently finished a year-long story at Wolf Haven International, funded by my grant from the Getty Images Grant for Good.

I’ve started a project I call For the Innocent. This is the story of the rescue of the Indicator species, in which certain sanctuaries focus on achieving conservation of a particular animal, and along with it, the status of many other species which share its habitat are saved.

Also, I wrote about Sarvey on my Kickstarter page to help raise funds for a "Finding Trust" book.