Question:
Are fox and wolf considered as najis the same as for dogs?
Answer:
Alhamdulillah, praise and thanks to Allah for the countless blessings He has blessed us all with. Blessings and salutations to the Prophet Muhammad PBUH, his wives, his family, companions and all those that follow his teachings to the day of judgement.
Coming back to the above question, as we all know, dog (الكلب) is najis mughallazoh (heavy najis) as set in Islam, and the way to clean it is with 7 washing and one of the washing is with water mixed with soil, as stated by the Prophet PBUH:
طَهُورُ إِنَاءِ أَحَدِكُمْ إِذَا وَلَغَ فِيهِ الْكَلْبُ أَنْ يَغْسِلَهُ سَبْعَ مَرَّاتٍ أُولَاهُنَّ بِالتُّرَابِ
“The cleansing of the utensil belonging to one of you, after it has been licked by a dog, is to wash it seven times, and using soil for cleaning for the first time.”
Sahih Muslim (279)
In the book Kitab Hasyiah Syeikh Ibrahim Baijuri (1/201) explains:
“Every living animal is clean with the exception of dog and swine and what is produced from both of them (even if it is a trained dog).”
The same is stated in Kitab Mughni Muhtaj (1/226), where it is said:
الْحَيَوَانُ كُلُّهُ طَاهِرٌ لِمَا مَرَّ إلَّا مَا اسْتَثْنَاهُ الشَّارِعُ أَيْضًا
“Every animal is pure unless what is stated otherwise by syarak (dog, swine and their lineage)”
Regarding the category for wolf (الذئب) and fox (الثعلب), they are not included in the category of dog (الكلب) and its lineage. This is stated by Dar Ifta Misriah:
الكلب هو: الحيوان المعروف النباح، فكل ما نبح وإن صغر حجمه (الكلب الرومي) أو كبر حجمه، وتغير شكله من أنواع ذلك الحيوان فهو كلب، وإن ضعف نباحه، وأمَّا ما لا ينبح وإن أشبه الكلب تماما (الذئب-الثعلب) فليس بكلب، ولا يشاركه نفس الأحكام
“Dog is an animal that barks, for every animal that barks, whether it is small such as (Griffon Lulu dog) or large. And if some of these dogs’ appearance change, due to mixing through breeding and others, they are all still categorized as dogs. And for an animal that does not bark, even if the physical appearance is similar to a dog (such as wolf and fox), then they are not categorized as a dog and do not share the same ruling.”
Conclusion
When we review the above evidence and opinions of scholars, we conclude that the ruling for wolf and fox is not the same as the ruling for dog and its lineage due to the following reasons:
- There is no specific evidence that state wolf and the fox is najis just like a dog.
- Wolf and fox are not a mix nor are they a lineage from dogs.
- The evidence just states the dog and its lineage and did not mention a fox or wolf.
Thus, here we state that the excrements and carcass of wolf and fox are considered as najis mutawasitah (moderate) and should be cleansed (the najis characteristics) using mutlak water. May this explanation give us understanding in our religion of Islam better.