Hadithcore
Sahih Muslim, 1572
sahih

Abu Zubair heard Jabir b. 'Abdullah (Allah be pleased with him) saying:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) ordered us to kill dogs, and we carried out this order so much so that we also kill the dog coming with a woman from the desert. Then Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) forbade their killing. He (the Prophet (ﷺ) further) said: It is your duty the jet-black (dog) having two spots (on the eyes), for it is a devil.

حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ أَبِي خَلَفٍ، حَدَّثَنَا رَوْحٌ، ح وَحَدَّثَنِي إِسْحَاقُ بْنُ مَنْصُورٍ، أَخْبَرَنَا رَوْحُ بْنُ عُبَادَةَ، حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ جُرَيْجٍ، أَخْبَرَنِي أَبُو الزُّبَيْرِ، أَنَّهُ سَمِعَ جَابِرَ بْنَ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، يَقُولُ أَمَرَنَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم بِقَتْلِ الْكِلاَبِ حَتَّى إِنَّ الْمَرْأَةَ تَقْدَمُ مِنَ الْبَادِيَةِ بِكَلْبِهَا فَنَقْتُلُهُ ثُمَّ نَهَى النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم عَنْ قَتْلِهَا وَقَالَ ‏

‏ عَلَيْكُمْ بِالأَسْوَدِ الْبَهِيمِ ذِي النُّقْطَتَيْنِ فَإِنَّهُ شَيْطَانٌ ‏

‏ ‏.‏

Isnad

7 transmitters
  1. 1Muhammad bin Ahmed bin Abi KhalafBaghdad · d. 237 AH
  2. 2Ruh bin 'Ubada bin al-'Ala'al-Basra · d. 207 AH
  3. 3Ishaq bin Mansur al-KausajMerv, Nisapur · d. 251 AH
  4. 4Ruh bin 'Ubada bin al-'Ala'al-Basra · d. 207 AH
  5. 5Ibn JurayjRome,Makkah · d. 150 AH or after
  6. 6Muhammad bin Muslim bin TadrasMakkah · d. 126 AH
  7. 7Jabir ibn 'AbdullahMedinah/Baghdad/Egypt/Damascus · d. ~78 AH/687 CE
References2 variants
In-Book Reference
Book 22, Hadith 59
USC-MSA web (English) reference
Book 10, Hadith 3813 (deprecated numbering scheme)
Sharh · explanationclick to expand
The pure Shariah has regulated the rulings of everything even animals, which include dogs. The Shariah has determined the way of benefiting from them and has clarified the rulings of what is lawful and unlawful regarding them. In this Hadīth, Jābir ibn ‘Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reports that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) commanded them to kill all dogs without any exception, to the extent that even when a woman came from the Bādiyah, which is the desert, bringing along her dog that would guard her and accompany her, we used to kill it in response to the Prophet's command. Afterwards, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) forbade killing dogs except for the pitch-black dog, the one that is totally black, "that has two spots," i.e., the two white spots above his eyes, as this dog is to be killed. His saying: "For it is a devil", means either in the true sense of the word for being pure harm that is void of any benefit or it is far from being beneficial and close to being harmful and detrimental, which is the case with the devil. So, this is a simile where the black dog is likened to the devil given its malice and because the black dog is the worst of dogs, the least in benefit, the most harmful, and the most mordacious. It was authentically reported in other Hadīths that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) forbade killing dogs except for the mordacious dog that hurts people, which should be killed, as mentioned in the Hadīth of ‘Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) in the two Sahīh Collections: "Five animals are all vicious and harmful and are to be killed inside the Sacred Precincts: the crow, the kite, the scorpion, the mouse, and the mordacious dog." In this Hadīth and similar ones, there is a prohibition of killing dogs, apart from those excluded, which are kept for benefiting from them in guarding, hunting, etc. It is said: Rather, he commanded killing them at first because people were so accustomed to having them, and dogs used to share with them their utensils. So, he wanted to wean them off that and, thus, gave the command of killing. However, when the idea of their filthiness and keeping them away became firmly established in themselves, he forbade this. Such a prohibition abrogated that command. So, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) forbade killing all dogs, even jet-black dogs, except for the harmful and aggressive ones..
Related hadiths1
Compare isnād across 1 related chains →