The ruling elites of the Islamic Republic of Iran are not known worldwide for their friendly, sunny dispositions; in fact, they have a long and ever-growing list of pet hates, including America, Israel, women (at least if their heads are uncovered and they’re out in public), and man’s other best friend, dogs. The ruling Iranian mullahs have now extended a ban that was already in effect in over twenty Iranian cities to the entire country: it is now against the law to walk the dog. That means, of course, that while private ownership of dogs as pets is ostensibly permitted in Iran, it has for all intents and purposes been outlawed.
Wamiz, a French-language site devoted to news of our four-legged friends, reported on Tuesday that anyone walking a dog “on the streets of Iran now risks more than just a fine – and it’s all down to deeply religious reasons.” Walking a dog has been illegal for years in Tehran and many other cities, and now there is nowhere in the entire Islamic Republic that you can take your dog for a walk and not risk running afoul of the nation’s feared morality police.
The ban is designed, according to Iranian authorities, to “maintain public order, ensure security and protect public health.” Wamiz, however, notes that “critics suspect a cultural-political message behind the crackdown.” This because for many Islamic hardliners in Iran, having a dog as a pet is not just unclean, but also shows that the dog owner has succumbed to the Satanic lure of the Western lifestyle. There are few things one can do to arouse more suspicion among Iranian authorities.
Owning a dog is such a bad thing to do in the Islamic Republic of Iran that the Ayatollah Khamenei himself has emphasized that “keeping dogs for reasons other than herding, hunting, and guard dogs is to be considered reprehensible.” He explained that “walking dogs damages Islamic culture as well as hygiene and the peace of others.”
Why would walking a dog damage Islamic culture? Quite simply, because Islam hates dogs. This goes for Shi’ite Islam, the dominant religion of Islam, as well as Sunni Islam, to which the overwhelming majority of Muslims worldwide adhere. Shi’ite collections of Muhammad’s words and deeds attribute quotes to him including “It is detestable for a Muslim to allow a dog to live in his house” (Al-Kafi H 12735, ch. 12, h 1); “Whoever keeps a dog, every day one qirat (a certain unit of measurement) is reduced from the (good) deeds of his owner” (Al-Kafi H 12736, ch. 12, h 2); and “There is nothing good in dogs except hunting dogs or that which guards cattle.” (Al-Kafi 12738, Ch. 12, h 4)
And so, Wamiz says, while “officially, keeping dogs isn’t banned in Iran, but anyone who has a four-legged friend lives an increasingly dangerous life.” The Iranian authorities are notorious, and feared and hated, worldwide for killing a woman they had arrested, Mahsa Amini, for not wearing her headscarf properly. In light of that and so many other incidents like it, it is no small matter for ordinary citizens even to consider flouting the rules of the regime. And those rules appear to be forever multiplying: “Authorities have repeatedly issued bans in recent years that prohibit taking dogs in cars or to parks or public spaces.”
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Even more maddening for dog owners is the fact that the morality police aren’t consistent. Whether or not someone gets away with walking the dog may come down to something as trivial as the identity of the morality cop on duty on any given morning, or even his mood that day. “Enforcement is often arbitrary. Sometimes they turn a blind eye, sometimes they crack down hard.” All in all, however, the Islamic Republic is not trending toward tolerance: “Dog owners are increasingly reporting that their animals are being confiscated or threatened.”
Some courageous Iranians are openly defiant: “Many dog owners refuse to be intimidated. Particularly in the capital, Tehran, many owners continue to walk their pets in the open. But this is far from safe.” Because of the emphasis the Iranian authorities have placed on this ban, “dog walks in Iran may now be seen as a political act. Daily walks with a canine companion have become a cultural battle.” As is so much else in the increasingly paranoid and defensive Islamic Republic.
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