Barney Goes to Blog Paws

Tripawds three legged dog community takes Barney the Purple Dinosaur to Blog Paws 2012 Social Media Conference in Salt Lake City.

Shortly after Barney arrived at the Colorado dude ranch where he’s learning the ropes from Wyatt Ray, the purple beast was whisked off to represent Tripawds at the Blog Paws 2012 Social Media Conference in Salt Lake City.

 KillBarney Tour takes Barney to Blog Paws

Although he didn’t seem to have too much interest in seminars about things like how to build a better blog, the Purple Dino did have an exciting encounter or two and got to be the center of attention on a few occasions.

Jerry Fan meets Barney and Wyatt at BlogPaws

Like when he met fellow blogger and animal lover Lisa Wagner from Chicago. Lisa told us how much she was touched by the PBS documentary I was featured in, “Why We Love Cats and Dogs.”

Lisa told us that my story brought tears to her eyes, and she couldn’t stop thinking about us for a long, long time. It was quite a coincidence that we happened to meet fan at Blog Paws! She was so happy to meet Wyatt Ray and Barney too!

Blog Paws was a whirlwind time for the purple beast. After two long days of seminars, banquets and networking, Barney was exhausted and ready for a quiet retreat back at the ranch.

Little did he know that Wyatt Ray had other plans for him  . . .

To be continued.

Please Help Get Barney Back on the Road

Purple dinosaur Barney doll and road tour being held captive by Tripawds community member.

I wish this was a joke, but sadly it’s not. Barney and all his treasures have been at Tripawd Katy’s house since February 14 and despite our many desperate pleas to get him moving again, Katy’s mom Crystal, has not responded.

Katy, Please Send Barney On!

Katy Hosts Tripawds KillBarney TourFor two months, we have been very concerned that something awful had happened to Katy or her pack. We received no response to our emails, when we asked about the Barney box and we were very worried. Finally, on March 25 she did post this blog post, “Don’t Panic, Barney’s Fine!

What a relief… but that was nearly a month ago. Katydid has now had Barney for almost two months, with no word on when he might be leaving or where he is going next.

Tripawds member kviz has offered to pay for shipping to get Barney back on Tour. We’ve also tried emailing, PMing Crystal and sending Facebook messages to her and her husband, Mike, but with no response we are becoming very concerned. Crystal is actively using Facebook and last logged in to Tripawds on April 8th so we know she’s online and has had the opportunity to see our messages.

We know life gets in the way of many things and Crystal is probably really busy. We get that. And if Barney somehow got destroyed by a dog, or lost in the mail, well, it would be tragic, but we get that too.

Tripawds KillBarney Tour JournalBut what we don’t get is:
knowing how Barney was mine and has visited many members,
knowing how many Tripawds have bared their souls in the KillBarney Journal and left so many mementos in the box,
and knowing what it means to this entire community,
why would Katy be holding him for so long?

Please help us find out!

I hope this doesn’t sound mean. It’s just that this is the first time this has happened and that little purple beast means a lot to all of us. We just want him on the road again, no questions asked, and we won’t have any hard feelings.

Barney has been with me since I was a puppy.

Puppy Jerry with First Barney

And he was there with me during my last moments on earth.

Jerry says final goodbye to Barney.

And he has helped many other Tripawds during their last days too.

What Should We Do Next?

My only ideas so far are that we should all try sending Facebook messages to Crystal and her husband, Mike, as well as through Katy’s Tripawds User Account (“katydid”) until we get confirmation that Barney is on the road (along with a tracking number for the peace of mind we so desperately need right now). If anyone has a phone number for Crystal, please give her a call or send us a PM so we can.

Thank you for whatever you can do to help get the KillBarney Tour back on the road. There are many other Tripawds out there who could use some cheering up!

Where oh where has Barney gone?

Enjoy classic video of Tripawds founder Jerry the three legged dog thrashing on Barney as we await news of the next KillBarney Tour visit.

While we anxiously await news about Barney’s latest adventures, please enjoy this blast from the past – one of Jerry’s first Barney thrashing videos, long before the KillBarney Tour ever began.

This video was shot just a couple months after Jerry’s amputation, before he and his pack even set out on their road trip of a lifetime. Notice how he had already learned to grab his little purple nemesis with his one remaining front paw!

Stay tuned for reports from Jerry’s Barney as he visits Tripawds members around the globe. And if you have no idea what we’re talking about be sure to review this recap of the KillBarney Tour rules of engagement.

Jerry Christmas To All

Jerry reminds all three legged dogs and their people to have very Hoppy Holidays, with his smiling photo from Christmas morning, 2007.

Jerry’s favorite present – aside from the Now* – was always that crazy singing Barney. No matter how many times it was re-gifted.

Jerry Christmas to Tripawds Everywhere!

*Now, present, gift, get it? 🙂

Hoppy Holidays KillBarney Fans! Stay tuned for more adventures of Jerry’s little purple friend in the New Year! In the mean time, check out where Barney has been, or let members know if you’d like him to pay a visit and why.

Barney Says Stay Tuned

While we wait for word from Barney on tour, enjoy a short video of four legged Jerry enlisting Barney’s help to hit a rather noisy ball.

We got a message from Barney, but all he said was that he has arrived safely at his current stop on the KillBarney Tour and that there are big plans in store for him there. When asked what we should tell all his waiting fans, he told us to show another one of Jerry’s movies.

So, here’s another pre-Tripawds favorite … short but sweet:

Stay tuned to hear all about Barney’s latest adventure. Or, check out all the fun he’s had with other tripawds.