Securing tunnels

[Chris Nelson]

It has never been in the NADAC rulebook that tunnels had to be bagged on the ends only.   Ever.

It was just how things were done, but never a rule.    We started to let our judges know they could start bagging them across the entire length of the tunnel through this past year.
It doesn't require a formal announcement because it's not a rule change, heck it's not even a rule update.     It's just updating a preference.


As for the safety concerns.    I can speak from experience that having the tunnel move is a larger issue then it not moving.    Hyper extending joints, slipping and then falling on shoulders and heads.    We have WAY fewer crashes with the tunnels bagged all the way through.

As for the dogs who hit them so hard they are hurting themselves, they are going to hurt themselves no matter what the tunnel is bagged like.    If there is absolutely zero self preservation happening then it's the handlers job to provide that.   If that can't happen then I would hope that team would maybe go back to training to get the dog to protect themselves a bit more.

[Marj Vincent]

.  For clubs that use sand and move their equipment to sites it would be extremely difficult to transport that much weight.

That is why we use water in our bags and we haul our equipment to our show site about 8 times a year.  It may take a little of time to fill on the first day and then empty them, but there is no weight to move them to and from the show site. Everyone chips in to fill them and empty them. With the Salty Dog water bladders they are easy to fill. They have water tight screw on caps they don't leak and the caps make them easy to empty.  Plus there are no complaints or concerns (from anyone ever!) with regards to bagging the middle of the tunnels.

[KarissaKS]

It has never been in the NADAC rulebook that tunnels had to be bagged on the ends only.   Ever.

It was just how things were done, but never a rule.    We started to let our judges know they could start bagging them across the entire length of the tunnel through this past year.
It doesn't require a formal announcement because it's not a rule change, heck it's not even a rule update.     It's just updating a preference.

There is definitely a public perception that NADAC had a rule about only bagging tunnels on the end. When all of the hullabaloo started about bagging tunnels, I specifically had people say to me that they wouldn't go to a NADAC trial because NADAC did not allow tunnels to be bagged on more than the ends and they did not find it safe.  I distinctly remember being at several NADAC trials where someone bagged the center of a tunnel and the judge said, "Oh no, that's not allowed, those need to come off." So if NADAC is now allowing or even encouraging tunnels to be more secure then it would probably be worth some positive PR to announce this. My first experience with this was my last NADAC trial last month and I was totally shocked to see the tunnels being bagged that way.

Honestly, I feel the biggest danger is going back and forth. A dog who is used to securely-bagged tunnels is going to struggle when the tunnel pushes out from under them. A dog who is used to a giving tunnel is going to struggle when it doesn't move. As with pretty much all agility equipment, the more we can standardize the better. I know my dogs are faster with secure tunnels. I also know that my dog has strained things when tunnels are not properly bagged. The more bags the better. The only downside is attempting to build/tear down a Tunnelers course at a small trial with little help....

[dogrsqr]

Yeah I was more referring to the “wall” of tunnel bags on the video.  We also use water with the bladders.  Unfortunately it does take time to fill them as we only have one water source with two people filling using a splitter hose.  No one likes the job of filling bags.

[dogrsqr]

Having been playing agility for 20+ years we’ve had no problem either way.  I think there are more injuries in general now because handlers are pushing for speed and are trialing dogs often.  Also more injuries are being diagnosed because there are more knowledgeable veterinary professionals. 

[Bostondirtdogs07]

Chris, thank you for this clarification.  I am going highly recommend that our Club provides more secure bagging of tunnels at our upcoming and future trials. 

It has never been in the NADAC rulebook that tunnels had to be bagged on the ends only.   Ever.

It was just how things were done, but never a rule.    We started to let our judges know they could start bagging them across the entire length of the tunnel through this past year.
It doesn't require a formal announcement because it's not a rule change, heck it's not even a rule update.     It's just updating a preference.


As for the safety concerns.    I can speak from experience that having the tunnel move is a larger issue then it not moving.    Hyper extending joints, slipping and then falling on shoulders and heads.    We have WAY fewer crashes with the tunnels bagged all the way through.

As for the dogs who hit them so hard they are hurting themselves, they are going to hurt themselves no matter what the tunnel is bagged like.    If there is absolutely zero self preservation happening then it's the handlers job to provide that.   If that can't happen then I would hope that team would maybe go back to training to get the dog to protect themselves a bit more.