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Ruling 2626

If a hunting dog hunts a wild animal that is lawful to eat, the hunted animal is pure and lawful to eat if six conditions are fulfilled:

  1. the dog must be trained in a manner that whenever it is sent to hunt, it goes, and whenever it is restrained, it stays. However, there is no problem if it cannot be restrained once it is has drawn close to the prey and seen it. There is also no problem if it has a habit of eating the prey before its owner reaches it. Similarly, there is no problem if it has a habit of drinking the prey’s blood. However, based on obligatory precaution, the condition is that if its owner wishes to take the prey from it, it must not have a habit of preventing its owner and opposing him;

  2. its owner must have sent it [to hunt the prey]. Therefore, if the dog hunts the prey of its own accord and kills it, it is unlawful to eat it. In fact, if it hunts the prey of its own accord and after that its owner calls it to catch the prey quicker, then even if the dog hastens to the prey on account of its owner’s call, one must refrain from eating the prey based on obligatory precaution;

  3. the person who sends the dog must be a Muslim as per the details mentioned in the conditions relating to hunting with a weapon;

  4. when the hunter sends the dog, or before the dog reaches the prey, the hunter must mention the name of Allah the Exalted. If he intentionally does not mention the name of Allah the Exalted, the prey is unlawful to eat. However, there is no problem if he forgets;

  5. the prey must die due to the wound inflicted by the dog’s teeth. Therefore, if the dog suffocates the prey or if the prey dies as a result of running or fear, it is not lawful to eat;

  6. the person who sent the dog must reach the prey after it has died, or if it is still alive, there should not be enough time to slaughter it as long as he has not delayed in reaching the prey for an abnormal length of time. If when he reaches the prey there is enough time to slaughter it but he does not, it is not lawful to eat.