During conversation at lunch break the other day, a colleague mentioned that he had heard that orthodox Muslims were prohibited from raising dogs as pets. As it happenes, one of our co-workers is Muslim and she confirmed that this was true, but she was unsure of the reasoning behind it. Any ideas?
Wow - this is a nice one. I have known Moslems to keep cats, so whether it is conincidence about the cats not being dogs, I do wonder.
OK it is nearly 6 in the morning and I know I won’t sleep till I learn this one!
Oops - no manners - welcome to the SDMB, Malabron
Ah - it seems that it might be OK if there is good reason.
[quote]
Keeping Dogs Without Necessity
Keeping dogs inside the house without any necessity merely as pets was forbidden by the Prophet (peace be on him). When we observe how lavishly the well-to-do treat their dogs while despising their relatives, and how much attention they give their dogs while neglecting their neighbors, we realize the wisdom of this prohibition. Moreover, the presence of a dog makes the household utensils unhygienic due to their licking of them. The Prophet (peace be on him) said, “If a dog licks a plate (or pot), clean it seven times, of which one time should be with sand (or earth).” (Reported by al-Bukhari.)
Some scholars are of the opinion that the reason for prohibiting the keeping of dogs may be because they bark at visitors, scare away the needy who come to ask for charity, and chase and try to bite passers-by.
The Prophet (peace be on him) said, Jibril came to me and said, ‘I came to you yesterday but what stopped me from entering was that there was a statue at the door, a curtain with figures on it in the house, and a dog inside the house. So order that the head of the statue be broken off so that it resembles the trunk of tree, that the curtain be cut and made into two pillows to recline on, and that the dog be taken out.’ (Reported by AbDaoud, al-Nisai, al-Tirmidhi, and by Ibn Hibban in his Sahih.)
This prohibition is limited to keeping dogs without need or benefit.
[/qquote]
http://www.witness-pioneer.org/vil/Books/Q_LP/ch2s3pre.htm#Keeping%20Dogs%20Without%20Necessity
goes on to discuss keeping dogs for hunting, etc.
That was fast!
Thanks, Celyn.
FTR, I once lived in a building with a number of Muslim residents. At times they were very adamant – OK, downright rude – when I had my dog in the elevator to go for a walk. Some even tried to order me out of the elevator, when I was there first! (I never budged.)
I did get some feedback that they were not supposed to have their food around dogs, so if they were carrying their lunch or groceries, they were particularly insistent.
I like to accomodate most people’s religious views. But hey, folks, if you come to a place where keeping dogs is common, don’t expect us to change the rules for you.
Ooops. Moderators, if my previous post violated policy for this forum, please delete it. Thanks.
I recently read an advice column from a Shi’ite imam (sorry, no cite) on this very question. He was of the opinion that it was better not to have a dog, but if you did keep one, it was very important that you have absolutely no dog hairs on your clothing when you go to pray. Given the propensity of dogs to shed and Muslims to pray, I’d say this recommendation makes perfect sense.
NO dog hairs? Well, I certainly could imagine that being tricky to arrange!
A good friend of mine is Muslim, and had a dog for a while. She’s pretty Americanized though, so she’s probably not a very strict Muslim.
As far as I know, Muslims are NOT specifically prohibited from owning dogs. The only problem is that dogs are considered unclean, while cats are not. For example, if you have recently performed your ablutions and are about to pray, your ablution will be negated if a dog licks you, but not if a cat licks you. You will then have to wash/perform your ablutions again if you want to be clean enought to pray. It is this inherent inconvenience and hassle that dissuades most muslims from owning dogs as pets. But to the best of my knowledge, it is not specifically prohibited
On a slight tangent, I jsut checked on something a Nigerian Moslem friend once mentioned - an important/esteemed scholar who was especially fond of cat, and was known as “The Father of the Cat”. I wonder whether this has anything to do with cats being “cleaner” than dogs.
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More to be found at:
Eh, my uncle has an Akbash (Big white Turkish dog.) You’d think that if dogs were the way to hell for Islam, a mostly-Islamic nation wouldn’t have a bunch of breeds coming from it…
Methinks that the Dog question is cultural one, sorta like the burqa (you don’t see many of those in Bosnia…).
My family is Muslim, and I have lived in Pakistan for a good eight years.
Keeping dogs as pets is strongly frowned upon by common Muslim society. As mentioned before by someone, dogs are considered unclean.
There is a belief that if there’s a dog in a house, angels will not enter the house, which is especially distressing on days such as Shab-e-Barat and Laylat-ul-Qadr, when angels are said to visit Muslim homes to bless its occupants. There are also doubts whether prayers said in a house with a dog would be acceptable, since there would be an issue of purity (tahara).
I know of Muslim households with cats, birds, fish, and kids. But no dogs.
This is, of course, according to the general Pakistani Sunni Muslim traditions, beliefs, and practices. Muslim traditions, beliefs, and practices vary from country to country, and from sect to sect.
[aside]
It’s interesting, then, that President General Musharraf has two dogs at his home. 
Shows that the good President (whom the average Pakistani loves dearly) is not an ardent Islamist (like the previous Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif or the last military ruler, General Zia-ul-Haq).
[/aside]
Ah - I am glad you came along with more direct knowledge, WeRSauron, and welcome to the SDMB.
Was the Afghan hound bred, then, some time before Afghanistan became Muslim? Or is it exempt as a hunting dog?
Does it really surprise anyone that dogs are considered unclean in Muslim society? After all, this is an animal that will, given the chance, eat excrement. If not monitored carefully, dogs will pick up lots of nasty parasites that can be passed to humans. If you don’t have the luxury of living in a big city with lots of vets, it’s only practical to limit the intimate interaction with dogs. I don’t understand why this is shocking?
Don’t get me wrong, I think dogs are really cool, but I don’t think they belong in the house/bed/licking people. I’m not Muslim, I was raised in a large Middle American city.
Well, I don’t think that the idea is that it is shocking, really - but well, cats can be pretty unhygienic little creatures too. I mean I never had dogs that could quite so happily leap all over the kitchen counter etc.
Cat’s aren’t clean; they’re covered in cat spit.
and vomit up hairballs!
Kids ??? 