Anne Marie Musselman reported the bird to the Sarvey Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, based just outside of Seattle, who rushed to help.

Impressed by their reaction, she volunteered and at the same time began a photography project that lasted six years - collecting haunting and beautiful shots of animals housed and treated at the small sanctuary.

She was left with the collection she called Finding Trust which also captures volunteers as they work.

In an explanation of the photo essay, she says she hopes the work explores the relationship between humans and the natural world.

'The work I produce documents the delicate union that exists between humans and animals,' she says.


'It’s not just the actual places where were our lives often intersect, like a park or forest, but the spaces where our emotions meet.'


'When a creature on an examining table turns toward my camera, I see the universal reactions of pain and confusion in its eyes.'

'The work documents the in-firmed animals’ recovery with a sense of wonder as they heal, hoping to return to the wild forests of the Northwest.'


'I hope to capture the palpable emotions in my photographs'.

She explains the project started from a wobbly pigeon she noticed was unable to fly.

She tried to lift the bird from the sidewalk but unable to help it further she contacted the center.

A volunteer drove 55miles to collect the pigeon - at 10pm.


'That little pigeon led me on a path that would change my life,' she explains.

'Located in the quiet foothills of the lush Cascade Mountain Range in Washington State, The Sarvey Wildlife Care Center is a piecemeal of houses, coyote runs, duck ponds, deer fields, bear cages, beaver pools and raptor flights.'

'It's an animal shantytown held together by rare donations and love. It is a place where injured, wild creatures come to finish their journey or start a new one,' she writes of the centre.


'It’s 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.

'My goal is to present the very important relationship and obligation we have to these animals.'

Musselman volunteered at the shelter before she was allowed to begin her photography project.

'I had to get the dirty work done before I could take pictures,' she says.


'I cleaned cages, fed and intubated animals, cut meat, gave medications, etc. Gaining the trust of the amazing people I work with took time, but eventually they saw that my love for these animals was huge...that I was one of them.'

The project has led Musselman into nature photography with her latest work focusing on the wildlife of Borneo.

Now she is raising money to have the collection published in full.

Much of the money needed has been put forward by Kehrer Verlag, the German publishing house, intending to release Finding Trust next year.


But the photographer needs an extra $15,000 to complete it.

She is raising money through Kickstarter, an online donation site that raises money for creative projects in the U.S.
Source