THE KOSHER ****K
(Also Known As "My Personal Passover Story")
Passover is about to arrive. I am reminded of something which happened
twelve years ago. Passover was a week away. I had just read that during
Passover, Jewish dog owners could only keep dog foods which were free of
homitz. I was the proud owner of a dog, my beloved mutt, Duke, so I
sought
rabbinical advice.
The rabbi read from a list of permitted dog foods. One of the brands on
the
list was Alpo "beef and bacon." But wait! Bacon comes from the pig.
"How
could this be?" I asked? "Rabbi, are you telling me to bring a ****k
product
into my home?" The rabbi responded by asking me, "Are you buying this for
yourself to eat or for your dog?" He then explained that it is not
forbidden for Jews to possess ****k. It was only forbidden for Jews to eat
****k products. He went on to explain that the Talmud expressly states
that
if a Jew has ****k, he should feed it to the dogs. Since I had a dog,
this
would follow the Talmudic instruction.
The rabbi also noted that this rule was in contrast to feeding the dog a
mixture of milk and meat. Jews are expressly prohibited from deriving any
benefit from mixing milk and meat. That, he explained, included feeding
it
to a dog. Over the next days I began to question: Why would the Talmud
expressly direct Jews to feed ****k to the dogs? Certainly, the Talmud
would
not direct a Jew to perform an act that violates the laws of Kashruth.
I sought a clue from the Midrash (a compilation of Rabbinic literature
from
roughly 400 to 1200 C.E). The Torah states that just before imposing the
Tenth Plague upon the Egyptians (killing of the first born), God told
Moses
that there would be loud wailing throughout Egypt, but where the Hebrews
lived, not even a dog would bark. The Midrash states that just before the
Angel of Death descended, God instructed all dogs living among the Hebrews
to be silent. The dogs complied with loving devotion. God was so
impressed
that He told them that because they had obeyed with such love, He would
reward them. He would instruct the Jewish people that hereafter they
should
give their non-kosher food to the dogs.
This explains giving non-kosher food to the dogs in general. However, the
Talmudic directive deals only with ****k. It does not mention other
non-kosher foods such as rabbits, shrimp or lobster, etc. Thus, this
Midra****c story did not explain why the Talmud instructs Jews specifically
to feed ****k to the dogs.
The first night of Passover arrived. As I began to eat the Seder meal, I
thought to myself, that this was the first time I had ever attended a
Seder
which had truly kosher food. And I thought of my dog at home, eating his
beef and bacon. Suddenly! The answer came to me in a flash: We are told
to
feed ****k to the dogs because ****k is Kosher for dogs! The Talmud does not
tell us to feed ****k to Gentiles. The laws of Kashruth do not apply to
Gentiles. However, the Talmud gives us a directive to feed ****k to the
dogs, so it must be that ****k is a kosher food for dogs! (When I returned
home, I had to tell Duke, "Sorry, boy, no more cheeseburgers. But here,
enjoy a kosher ham sandwich! Oh, by the way, Duke, since it is Passover,
your ham sandwich is with Matzo!")
In conclusion, while ****k is certainly not Kosher for a Jew to eat, it is
Kosher for our beloved pooches. Thus, by feeding ****k to our dogs, we are
actually helping them to keep Kosher! A Mitzvah in and of itself!
A very joyous and Kosher Passover for you - and for your dogs!
P.S.: Duke passed away two years ago. I have since adopted a new dog,
another beloved mutt, who I've named ****nik (and does he live up to his
name), so I have this issue again. Now I am wondering: Do we have to make
sure that the pig was properly slaughtered in a kosher manner, and that it
was salted and soaked? Do we need a Shochret? I'll just have to ask my
Rabbi!!
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