Barnum Conwell

Barnum (CH Shilo’s Greatest Sho on Earth, CGC, CGCA, TDI) was born on July 16, 2010 and went to heaven on January 4, 2019. He was the “red boy” in his litter and had a wonderful mommy named Desi and daddy named Ryder. Barnum was and is our third golden retriever (and second boy) and it only took his mommy less than 24 hours to convince daddy to add Barnum to the family. Barnum’s favorite toys were: bones (he often held them so it looked like he was smoking a pipe), holding soft toys in his mouth, lambie, and bumpers (for swimming or holding). Barnum’s favorite things were: playing ball, swimming, and rubbing up against furniture, walls, and other things like a cat (which we affectionately referred to as ”Bu Bu tatting”). Barnum also was a proud papa of several beautiful litters. We are thankful for the amazing dams and their owners as well. We love that he lives on through his children and their amazing owners. A friend of the family once said of Barnum, “He loves life and he loves himself.” We thought that was a succinct way of describing our beloved boy. He also loved his family and friends fiercely. Barn was the life of the party and he brought so much joy and energy to our life and our home. He was the kind of guy you always wanted to be around. He taught us to embrace each moment of life with zest, joy, and thankfulness, even as we walked through his battle with melanoma. He was loving and happy even up to the very end when he was not feeling well. Barnum was a therapy dog through Therapy Dogs International (TDI). He visited the patients, their families, and staff at The Mark H. Zangmeister Cancer Center and facilities through Capital City Hospice. He brought joy to many people over his years of therapy visits. We want to thank Dr. Carrie Crouse at Paws in Balance for treating and loving Barnum (and us) every week for almost 4 months (he loved and loves you so much), Dr. Kate Taikowski (for your kind heart, for being there for him and us and all the questions), Dr. Megan Brown (for reaching out right away and being there), Dr. Jill Yaissle (for initial finding and your kind heart), Dr. Erik Weisgerber ( for your kind heart and care of Barnum over the years), Dr. Mark McCloskey (for your kind heart and care of Barnum over the years) and Dr. Ryan Quigley (you helped us through a very tough morning and were so caring) for the love and medical care they gave him, especially towards the end. We also send a very special thanks to MeMa (Toni Norton) and Jennifer Krawsczyn for entrusting us with this precious boy. Thank you Jill Rockwell for being there the day of diagnosis and loving us. Thank you to Judy and Ken Schlecht. Thank you to Carrie Rosenkoetter for loving and finishing our boy as a CH. Barnum leaves behind his human parents, Rachel and Mark Conwell, who will miss him and love him forever. He also leaves behind his golden pack members Lilah and Kaly who love him and will miss him as well. We know Angel Samson who passed in April was waiting to greet him in heaven. We will see you in heaven our sweet baby, baby boy. We love you to the moon and back Bu Bu.

Barnum Conwell

July 16, 2010 - January 4, 2019