Dear Friends,
I wanted to keep all our supporters up to date with what is going on with Unchained Melodies Dog Rescue and where we stand with the recent outbreak of Covid-19 in our area.
These times are unprecedented, and we are dealing the best we can with the day to day changes. In order to keep our volunteers and the community safe, we need to limit as much interaction with the public as possible. Therefore, all fundraising and adoption events have been canceled.
Our training classes have been postponed due to the Stay at Home Order, but in the mean time, our trainer has created a Facebook group to share training tips, presentations, "Ask the Trainer" sessions, and videos to help with training while we are at home. This is extra learning for those who have purchased one of our training classes, and is free. The 6 week in-person classes will begin again once it is safe to do so. This is just another way we can continue to help the dogs become the best they can be. Learn more about our training classes at https://unchainedmelodies.org/dog-training.
We are still facilitating a limited amount of adoptions and "meet and greets" using extreme caution and meeting all CDC recommendations. We are using virtual tours to meet our requirement of a 'home visit' to sign on foster and adoptive homes and using scanning and on-line signature options when possible.
We are NOT accepting or training any new volunteers at this time. I know this seems strange being that we are a volunteer-based organization and volunteers are the foundation of Unchained Melodies, but due to the new protocols we need to limit the number of people coming into the facility.
Animal care is considered an essential business so we will continue to provide for the dozens of dogs that we still have in our care. Volunteers will continue to care for the dogs at our training facility and in our nursery while following social distancing and implementing all cleaning and sanitizing protocols.
Foster homes will continue to be provided with all necessary supplies to care for their foster dog with supplies being delivered to their doorstep if needed.
Lastly, we will continue to rescue as many dogs as we can, provided we have the space and funds available. We will continue our mission to rescue the chained/penned backyard dog and any dog that is being neglected and abused for as long as we can sustain ourselves.
The community has been extremely generous to UMDR since its inception and we are thankful for the support we receive throughout the year and even during these troubling times. We do not have unlimited funding, government funding or even grant money to depend on. We only have private donations from our supporters that believe in our mission and want to help us continue to help the dogs that need us most. It seems strange to ask but if you are thinking of ways to help the local businesses, remember the non-profits that depend on YOU.
We rescue dogs from all over the State of Missouri. We are based in Columbia, MO and considered a “small’ non-profit. Just a monthly donation in any amount will help stabilize our finances so that we can stay on budget and meet the needs of the animals we have in our care now, and the ones we will be rescuing throughout this pandemic.
It breaks our heart that things have come to this, we are normally very active in our community, but we must be part of the solution and abide by and respect the decisions that the officials and local municipalities are enforcing. They are at the forefront of handling this pandemic and are working tirelessly to keep our community as safe as possible and we have the utmost respect for all of them as well as every individual that is providing the essentials for our community during these trying times.
UMDR has always done great things with very little and we will continue to do so with the hard work and dedication of our volunteers.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart and I will continue to work tirelessly for the dogs that meet our mission and make sure that every dollar donated will be used to be the voice of the voiceless in our community and throughout the State of Missouri.
Everyone please be safe and stay healthy. Hug your pets, cherish your family and be kind and support each other.
With the greatest of gratitude,
Melody Whitworth
Director
Unchained Melodies Dog Rescue