Pic caption: The Pak Mie Shelter was founded by Halijah Idris, 73 (right), also known as Mak Intan, who passed away due to ovarian cancer on Feb 10 this year. She started the animal shelter with her husband Muhammad Azmi Ismail, also known as Pak Mie, since 1990. Pak Mie passed away in 2015. (Pic courtesy of The Star)
CURRENTLY, the residents of a village in Pendang, Kedah are up in arms over the relocation of an embattled animal shelter with some 300 rescued animals – mostly dogs – to their kampung nestled in a padi field.
This follows a plan to relocate the much publicised Pak Mie Shelter with 220 dogs and 100-odd cats from its current location by the banks of Sungai Kedah to a 6,300 sq ft warehouse fully funded and renovated by preacher Ebit Lew.
A village chief has handed a protest note to state assemblyman Dr Mohd Hayati Othman who chairs the state executive council’s health and local government committee.
Portrayal of dogs as impure
Let me tell you the history about dogs in Islam. Dogs are conventionally thought of as ritually impure.
This idea taps into a long tradition that considers even the mere sight of a dog during prayer to have the power to nullify a pious Muslim’s supplications.
Prophet Muhammed and his cousins raised dogs. There is, however, quite a different unknown strand of thinking about dogs in Islam – a long history of positive interactions between Muslims and dogs that goes back to the religion’s very beginnings.
According to several authoritative accounts of his life and teachings, Prophet Muhammad himself prayed in the presence of dogs.
Many of his cousins and companions – the world’s first Muslims – raised young puppies. In the mosque of the Prophet in Medina, the second holiest site in the world for Muslims after the Kaaba, dogs were regularly seen frolicking about during the prophet’s life and for centuries after as well.
It’s no surprise that the first Muslims had so many dogs. As most of them kept large flocks of sheep and goats, dogs helped to manage and protect these other animals, preventing them from running away and scaring off would-be thieves and predators.
Given that sheep and goats were these early Muslims’ food and capital, dogs helped to protect these investments.
If even Prophet Mohammad and his cousins kept dogs 1,450 years ago, the current Muslims should not be afraid of dogs.
According to modern science, there are many benefits of having a dog:
- Dogs make us feel less lonely …
- Dogs are good for our heart …
- Dogs ensure that we don’t stressing out …
- Dogs help us cope with crisis …
- Dogs encourage us to move on in life …
- Dogs make us more attractive inside out …
- Dogs make us more social. …
- Dogs are so adorable that they make us love them.
There is an old English saying that “A dog is a man’s best friend”. Even if you come home late at night, your dog will wag his tail to welcome you home.
As far as I can remember, I always have one or two dogs. I am nearly 89 years old and I can vouch that having a dog has definitely prolonged my lifespan. – Oct 24, 2021
Koon Yew Yin is a savvy investor and philanthropist.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
