953,077 animals were used in laboratory research in 2012 according to the US statistics. This topic of animal testing has been an incredibly popular one both currently and in the years past. Just in the past years an incredibly graphic project in a London “Lush” storefront protested the cause by putting a volunteer through similar acts that were performed on animals in cosmetic testing on display for all to see. Protests like these have been making changes. In just 2 years, from 2010 to 2012, the number of animals used in laboratory testing has reduced 16%.
For more information:
http://speakingofresearch.com/facts/statistics/
One of my major passions in life is animal ethics of all kinds, including the issue of animal testing, so I was so excited to make these photos to hopefully help spread awareness, or at least get the viewers to stop for a second and think about them. But, where do you temporarily get a mouse? I found success at a local pet store that made an exception for me. The mouse I used was so small, a feeder mouse whose destiny was to be used in the food chain. I got to take him for 6 hours during the day, made a large home for him to enjoy, and kept the photo process as low stress as possible for him. The glassware was actually pretty hard to find. To buy that glassware on short notice wasn’t an option, but the chemistry stock room graciously let me borrow their glassware for the day. I planned to take a photo that looked like the mouse was in a jail cell of test tubes, but to have them safely secured proved too hard, and I didn’t want to break glass or put the mouse in danger.
I really enjoyed taking these photos, but if you try a similar shoot don’t think it will be a walk in the park. It takes a lot of patience to respectfully work with an animal. In this particular case, Elliott (that’s what I named him/her… shouldn’t have named him/her…), was great to work with. If I felt that he was getting stressed out I put him back in his box and let him take a break. It made it a lot easier to get a photo when he wasn’t nervous, stressed, and fidgety. I know what you’re wondering… did I keep this precious animal model? I was so incredibly tempted to never take him back, but I kept my wits and returned him so I could abide by my apartment’s no pet rules. I won’t lie… makes me want to cry.
Anyways… Here’s the lighting set up:
Kaiti Grant 