Man's best friend according to Islam

My friend asked me to write my blog in English, so I thought I would (pun intended) throw her a bone. While I was at it, I thought I would write a post wonderfully in-tune with two of her interests: Dogs, and Islam. I read a great article, half drunk on fluorescent lights and stolen coffee, while in the library today by Dr. Khaled Abou El Fadl which really opened my eyes to our favorite four-legged friends. We all know that Muslims hate dogs right? (I am reminded of the rotting hunk of dog carcass I passed by a few times in the Old City of Sana'a) Well According to many Maliki jurists, everything found in nature is presumed to be pure unless proven otherwise, either through experience or text. And after all, there is nothing in the Qur'an specifically against dogs! and....Even more good news for sugar:
"Another group of jurists argued that the purity of dogs turn on their domesticity—domestic dogs are considered pure because human beings feed and clean them, while dogs that live in the wild or on the streets of a city could be carriers of disease, and therefore, they are considered impure."
how about that, K?! As for me, next time I throw my stick for cubby, I can relax as he jumps into the pool to get it, remembering that canines are not haraam, merely makrooh when unclean. Maybe darting around for his stick in the pool is his way of praising the divine (Q17:44), I mean he sure looks like he is in a state of spiritual transcendence when he dives under the water again and again. Maybe as he dashes for his stick I will read Ibn Al-Marzuban who wrote a fascinating treatise titled, The Book of the Superiority of Dogs Over Many of Those Who Wear Clothes, which contrasts the loyalty and faithfulness of dogs to the treachery and fickleness of human beings.
After all, several reports indicated that the Prophet’s young cousins, and some of the companions owned puppies. Other reports indicated that the Prophet prayed while a dog played in the vicinity. In addition, there is considerable historical evidence that dogs roamed freely in Medina and even entered the Prophet’s mosque. A particularly interesting tradition attributed to the Prophet asserted that a prostitute, and in some versions, a sinning man, secured their places in Heaven by saving the life of a dog dying of thirst in the desert. I will have to keep that in mind....

here's to the dogs! or whatever