What Should I Do About Dog Contamination in a Washing Machine?

Question

I am a Hanafi, but I wish to follow the Shafi‘i School. However, my parents do not adhere to a specific School, though they fulfil basic Islamic practices such as prayer and fasting.

My parents do not purify their clothes according to the Shafi‘i rules. They put their soiled clothes in the washing machine. Consequently, my clothes may become najis (impure) due to their clothes being contaminated with dog saliva (which rarely happens due to our urban living conditions).

Is there any flexibility in this matter so my clothes do not become impure? I have tried discussing this with my parents, but they have yet to listen.

Answer

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

May Allah guide every dimension of our lives to that which pleases Him. Amin.

There are differing views about the purity status of dogs and pigs. When one encounters situations such as the one described, it may be wiser to treat them according to the less strict views. According to these valid opinions, the single machine wash was sufficient to clean the trousers, and the other clothes remained clean. Allah knows best.

Are Dogs Clean?

Dogs, like pigs, are considered filth (najasa) in the Shafi‘i School. [Nawawi, Minhaj al-Talibin]

Every living animal, even dogs and swine, is physically pure in the Maliki school. [Jaziri, al-Fiqh ‘ala al-Madhahib al-Arba’a]

While the more conservative view is that of the Shafi’i School, the dispensation exists for those with difficulty preventing dog contamination. On condition that their prayer, with its prerequisites, is considered valid in the Maliki School and Allah knows best. [Keller, Reliance of the Traveler]

Filth (Najasa) Contamination of Dogs and Pigs

The type of contact that would cause contamination by pigs and dogs is restricted, in the Shafi‘i school, to contamination by traces of moisture, whether saliva, urine, anything moist from them, or any of their dry parts that have become moist [Shirbini, Mughni al-Muhtaj]

Cleaning Heavy Contamination

In the Shafi‘i School, something contaminated by filth from dogs or swine can only be cleansed by washing seven times. One of which (recommended not to be the last) must be with purifying earth mixed with purifying water and reach the entire affected area.

Though not in the official position, one may substitute something like soap or detergent instead of the earth. [Nawawi, al-Rawda]

If something dry, such as the animal’s breath or hair, touches one’s person, it need only be brushed away. [Ibid.]

In the Maliki and Hanafi Schools, the above sevenfold washing is a sunna and not obligatory. According to these views, one may merely wash the clothes in the washing machine to purify the contamination, and Allah knows best. [Jaziri, al-Fiqh ‘ala al-Madhahib al-Arba‘a]

I pray this is of benefit and that Allah guides us all.
[Shaykh] Irshaad Sedick
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Shaykh Irshaad Sedick was raised in South Africa in a traditional Muslim family. He graduated from Dar al-Ulum al-Arabiyyah al-Islamiyyah in Strand, Western Cape, under the guidance of the late world-renowned scholar Shaykh Taha Karaan.

Shaykh Irshaad received Ijaza from many luminaries of the Islamic world, including Shaykh Taha Karaan, Mawlana Yusuf Karaan, and Mawlana Abdul Hafeez Makki, among others.

He is the author of the text “The Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal: A Hujjah or not?” He has served as the Director of the Discover Islam Centre and Al Jeem Foundation. For the last five years till present, he has served as the Khatib of Masjid Ar-Rashideen, Mowbray, Cape Town.

Shaykh Irshaad has thirteen years of teaching experience at some of the leading Islamic institutes in Cape Town). He is currently building an Islamic online learning and media platform called ‘Isnad Academy’ and has completed his Master’s degree in the study of Islam at the University of Johannesburg. He has a keen interest in healthy living and fitness.