Keeping pets
| Fatwa #2305 | Category: Miscellaneous | Country: United Kingdom | Date: 17th March 2026 |
| Fatwa #2305 | Date: 17th March 2026 |
| Category: Miscellaneous | |
| Country: United Kingdom | |
Question
السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته
Mufti Sahib is it permissible to keep an animal such as an alligator, wolf or fox as a domestic pet?
And if they’re kept in such a way where they do not cause harm to anyone and are well looked after, what is the ruling?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.
It is permissible to keep animals which are pure and prone to purity. It is not permissible to keep pets which are impure and prone to impurity. Animals which are entirely impure, such as dogs, are not permitted except for valid reasons such as a farm dog, guard dog etc.
Another aspect to consider would be safety . Keeping an alligator or a wolf is not easy and it remains a dangerous animal both to oneself and others. A believer does not unnecessarily put himself in harms way as it comes in a narration,
لَا ضَرَرَ وَلَا ضِرَارَ
Translation: “There is neither harm nor reciprocating harm.” (Ibn Majah – 2340)
Therefore, if such animals are kept in a manner where safety is guaranteed, and the animals are looked after well, it is permissible to keep them.
And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best
Mufti Bilal Pandor
Concurred by
Mufti Muhammad Patel
Darul Iftaa Mahmudiyyah
Lusaka, Zambia