Can a Hanafi Woman Living Alone Keep a Guard Dog?

Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel

Question

I’m a single woman abroad, dealing with anxiety and loneliness, taking antidepressants.

I want a protective dog, but avoiding saliva contact in my apartment is hard. How does the Hanafi school view this?

Can I consider another Sunni opinion, like Maliki, if needed? I plan to keep the dog lifelong. How does this affect the ruling?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.

I hope you are well. Allah Most High alleviate your circumstances and give you well-being (afiya).

If all options to improve your circumstances, like moving, marrying, or security measures, are exhausted, as a vulnerable single woman on antidepressants, it may be permissible to have a dog for security and emotional stability, based on a nuanced necessity.

In the Hanafi school, keeping a dog as a pet is strongly disliked (makruh tahriman), yet one may keep a hunting or guard dog to protect one’s property, livestock, or crops.

However, the Maliki school permits it when there is a genuine fear of harm or theft, and it may be kept as long as the reason for keeping it remains, such as when your life circumstances change, for example, getting married, moving, or no longer needing the same level of protection.

Allah Most High says, “Allah does not burden a soul beyond what it can bear.”[Quran, 2:286]

Ibn Umar (Allah be pleased with him), the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) said, “Whoever keeps a (pet) dog which is neither a watchdog nor a hunting dog, will get a daily deduction of two Qirat (a measure) from his good deeds.” [Bukhari]

(Such as a hunting dog), and for guarding crops, orchards, and livestock.”

Abu Umar (Ibn Abd al-Barr) said in his al-Tamhid: “It is permissible to keep a dog for all beneficial purposes and for warding off harm, even outside rural areas, in places where theft is feared.”

Ibn Naji, commenting on the statement in the Risilah (A dog should not be kept in houses in urban areas), said: “That is, unless there is a necessity to protect oneself, in which case a dog may be kept until the reason preventing it no longer exists.” [Alish, Minah al-Jalil Sharh Mukhtasar al-Khalil]

Necessity Allows the Bare Minimum

Necessity would only allow you to keep a dog until your circumstances improve. [Ibn Nujaym, al-Ashbah wa al-Naza’ir]

Try your best to find ways, as mentioned above, to alleviate your circumstances, as even with a dog, you are taking on extra commitments.

And Allah knows best.

[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Related Answers

Is it Permissible to Keep a Watchdog Inside the House? (Maliki) – If there is a reasonable need to have that dog inside the house, then it would be permissible to keep the dog in the house.

Are Watch Dogs Permissible to Own And Keep Inside The House (Hanafi)? -In the Hanafi school, it is prohibitively disliked (makruh tahriman) to keep a dog as a pet, yet one may keep a hunting dog or a guard dog to protect one’s property, harvest, sheep, or cattle.

Mawlana Ilyas Patel has received traditional education in various countries. He started his schooling in the UK and completed his hifz of the Quran in India. After that, he joined an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied secular and Aalimiyya sciences. Later, he traveled to Karachi, Pakistan, and other Middle Eastern countries to further his education. Mawlana has served as an Imam in the Republic of Ireland for several years and taught the Quran and other Islamic sciences to both children and adults. He also worked as a teacher and librarian at a local Islamic seminary in the UK for 12 years. Presently, he lives in the UK with his wife and is interested in books and gardening.

(كَكَلْبِ صَيْدٍ) وَحِرَاسَةِ زَرْعٍ وَبُسْتَانٍ وَمَاشِيَةٍ. أَبُو عُمَرَ فِي تَمْهِيدِهِ، وَيَجُوزُ اقْتِنَاءُ الْكَلْبِ لِلْمَنَافِعِ كُلِّهَا وَدَفْعِ الْمَضَارِّ وَلَوْ فِي غَيْرِ الْبَادِيَةِ مِنْ الْمَوَاضِعِ الْمُخَوَّفِ فِيهَا السِّرَاقُ. ابْنُ نَاجِي عَلَى قَوْلِ الرِّسَالَةِ وَلَا يُتَّخَذُ كَلْبٌ فِي الدُّورِ فِي الْحَضَرِ مَ نَصُّهُ مَا لَمْ يَضْطَرَّ لِحِفْظِهِ فَيُتَّخَذَ حَتَّى يَزُولَ الْمَانِعُ، وَقَدْ اتَّخَذَ الشَّيْخُ ابْنُ أَبِي زَيْدٍ كَلْبًا فِي دَارِهِ حِينَ وَقَعَ حَائِطٌ مِنْهَا وَخَافَ عَلَى نَفْسِهِ مِنْ الشِّيعَةِ

الكتاب: منح الجليل شرح مختصر خليل
المؤلف: محمد عليش
الناشر: دار الفكر – بيروت