Dog enthusiasts in Tehran, Iran, are having their pets taken away because Islam regards dogs as an “unclean animals” and a part of “ vulgar Western culture ,” the Times of Israel reported.
As political correctness surrounds the migration of more Islamic belief systems into Europe and the U.S., questions arise over if this could ever happen in our own culture.
Political correctness concerning Islam is already taking a strong hold. For example, the U.S. Department of Justice plans to censor all references to Islamic terrorism in relation to the 911 call transcripts for the Orlando shooting, Zero Hedge reported. In addition, criticizing Muslims is sometimes viewed as a hate crime that can rise to the level of federal prosecution.
In Iran, prosecutor Mohsen Boosaidi reportedly led the dog confiscations. A dog owner who was not identified by Shahrvand, an Iranian newspaper, said “officials” came to his home and told him his dogs were being taken away so they could be vaccinated.
The dog owner was told he could later pick up his dog from a vet’s office. But when he went to get his dog he was told “they had no record of his case,” the Times of Israel reported.
“Ever since our dog was taken away, you only hear the sound of crying and sobbing in our house,” an unnamed dog owner told Shahrvand.
The paper reported dog confiscations had taken place for at least three days. No figures were given for how many were taken. Boosaidi justified the dog confiscations by saying they are forbidden in religious texts.
“Keeping and caring for dogs is haram (forbidden) according to religious leaders,” Boosaidi told an Iranian news agency. “If we find out that anyone is keeping and caring for dogs and so is promoting vulgar Western culture, we will deal with them firmly.”
But that view of animals is not true, Javid Al-e Davood of Iran’s Society For Protection of Animals, told Shahrvand.
“Associating keeping dogs with Western culture is distorting the history of Islamic and Iranian civilization,” he said.
According to Islamic beliefs, dogs are “najes” (unclean). Islamic police will often stop and fine people walking their dogs. Working dogs, such as service dogs or those trained to guard property, are tolerated.
Dr. Ayoub M. Banderker, a veterinary surgeon in Cape Town, South Africa, wrote an article saying “animal abuse, cruelty, and/or neglect form part of the many social ills plaguing the Muslim community .”
“Last Ramadan, I wrote an article highlighting the phenomenon whereby misinformed Muslims took their dogs (and/or cats) to the animal hospitals or mobile clinics during Ramadaan, to have them put to death by lethal injection,” Banderker wrote. “The reason given by the majority of these Muslims was that Islam forbids them to keep a dog.”
In our country, people who appreciate animals have a deep regard for their pets and often view them as family members or – truly – best friends. Our nation has its own problems with the treatment of pets, as well, as many pets are surrendered to shelters every year and reports of animal cruelty are all too common.
America is home to as many as 80 million dogs and 96 million cats, according to the American Pet Products Association (APPA). In 2015, Americans spent an estimated $60 billion on pets , NBC News reported.
In addition to pet care, people spend untold amounts of money on toys, clothes, gourmet food, upscale grooming, and the list goes on.
We live in a culture where dogs “write” blogs that talk about chasing squirrels or destroying designer shoes. Some people create Facebook profiles for their dogs so they can talk to other “dogs.” (Facebook deletes such accounts if they’re found, however, because they violate their terms of use). 
[Photo by John Pratt/Getty Images]
Taking away our dogs (or cats) would surely spark a major revolution, or would it? Collectively, the public has been so conditioned to “roll over and play dead” that it’s hard to say for sure what might happen if pet confiscations ever happened in America.
If people won’t say anything about it, maybe the dogs can start blogging about it.
[Photo by Ben Pruchnie/Getty Images]