Keeping Dogs & puppies as pets

· 13 Jumada I 1436 AH1 min readEnglish

Question

What is the Shariah ruling of keeping a dog/puppy as a pet as I have witnessed many Muslims keeping dogs/puppies as pets? Kindly advise?

Answer

It is not permissible to keep dogs/puppies as pets. In doing so, one’s household will be deprived of the Mercy and blessings of Allah Ta’ala. Rasulullah Sallallaahu Alaihi Wasallam said:

“Angels do not enter a house wherein there is a dog or an animate picture” (Bukhari)

However, if a dog is kept for a valid reason, for e.g. a dog is kept for security, farming and hunting purposes, it will be permissible to kept a dog under certain limitations and restrictions. (Shaami)

And Allah Ta’ala Knows Best

References (Arabic / Urdu sources)

لاَ تَدْخُلُ المَلاَئِكَةُ بَيْتًا فِيهِ كَلْبٌ وَلاَ صُورَةٌ

Answered by
Mufti Ismaeel Bassa
Checked by
Mufti Ebrahim Desai
Questions about this ruling, answered only from the archive with sources.

Where scholars differ, it’s safer to take the more cautious view.

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