KANGAR, July 8 — Muslims are not encouraged to keep dogs in the house, according to Perlis Mufti, Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin.
He said there was a hadith (saying) from Prophet Muhammad that deemed a dog’s lick as “najis” (unclean).
“To avoid being licked by a dog which always has its tongue out, with the animal’s saliva regarded as unclean from the religious aspect and harmful, according to science, Islam forbids keeping dogs in the house without a valid reason,” said Mohd Asri on his Facebook page.
His statement was in reference to the viralled incident of a tudung-clad Muslim woman who kept her pet dog in the house and allowing the dog to lick her, after she posted it onto her Facebook page.
Mohd Asri said the Prophet’s hadith as narrated by renowned Islamic scholars Bukhari and Muslim mentioned reduced daily blessings for letting dogs in the house , except keeping the animal (outside the house) for hunting purposes and for guarding livestock.
He said that based on that hadith, keeping dogs for the reasons mentioned was deemed “makruh” (inappropriate but not a sin) although some ulama viewed it as haram (forbidden).
He added that many studies found that a dog’s bite, saliva and faeces could be detrimental to health and that was why Islam discouraged Muslims from keeping dogs as pets. — Bernama
