Chapter 324

Feeding animals on Shabbos

1. Feeding animals:[1]

It is permitted for one to feed home and farm animals, food and drink, if they are dependent on him for their food. It is however forbidden to feed home and farm creatures if they are not dependant on him for their food, such as bees, or pigeons.[2] It is forbidden to even simply place food in front of them.[3] It goes without saying that it is forbidden to feed wild animals or birds.

Dogs: It is permitted to feed dogs, even if they are wild and not owned[4] and are hence not dependant on oneself for their food. Furthermore, it is even a slight Mitzvah to do so.[5]

Pigs: It is forbidden to feed a pig on Shabbos [even if one owns it and it is dependent on oneself for food].[6]

Shabbos Shira:[7] Some are accustomed to place food in front of animals on Shabbos Shira, [even if the animals are not dependant on people for their food]. However based on above doing so is incorrect being that these animals are not dependant on people for their food.[8] [Practically one is not do so, or even allow children above Chinuch to do so.[9] Rather one who wants to honor the custom is to set up food for the animals from before Shabbos. Likewise one is to explain to children the importance of being merciful to animals.[10]]

Feeding insects:[11] It is permitted to feed worms [and other creatures] that one owns if they are dependent on oneself for their food.

 

Q&A

May one feed someone else’s animal?[12]

All animals which are dependent on humans for food may be fed by any person, even if they are not the owner.

 

May one throw away leftovers in an area that animals will be able to eat them?[13]

Yes.[14] Hence one may shake bread crumbs off one’s table cloth onto ones porch for birds to eat.

May one feed a hungry wild animal from outside?

Some Poskim[15] rule one may feed any animal which appears famished and unable to find food for itself even if the animal is not owned.

 

May one chase an animal outside if it has food in his mouth?[16]

It is forbidden to chase an animal which one owns from a private domain to an area without an Eiruv if the animal has food in his mouth.

 

2. Preparing food for one’s animals:[17]

It is permitted to prepare foods on Shabbos for one’s animals, in a non-forbidden way, in order to make the food fit to be eaten. It is however forbidden to trouble oneself to make the food more pleasurable for the animal if the food is edible for the animal in its current state. This applies even if enhancing the food does not contain any prohibition.[18] It is forbidden in all cases to prepare food for an animal if doing involves a Shabbos prohibition.

Cutting meat for a dog:[19] One may cut a [hard[20]] carcass and throw its meat to dogs [which one owns[21]] even if the animal died that day. It is not Muktzah even if one was not at all sick from before Shabbos and thus did not have in mind at all to feed its meat to dogs from before Shabbos.[22]

Measuring food for animals:[23] It is forbidden to measure food for his animals.[24] Rather one is to give the animal food based on a rough estimation.

 

Q&A

May one do Borer for the sake of one’s animal?[25]

Doing Borer for an animal which one owns has the same laws as Borer for humans. Hence it is permitted to remove good from bad with one’s hand to feed one’s animal right away. It is forbidden to do Borer for an animal which one does not own.[26]

 

3. Gavage: Force-feeding animals that are dependent on oneself for food:[27]

It is forbidden to gorge an animal on Shabbos by stuffing food into his stomach, even if it is dependent on one for its food.[28] One may however stuff the food in his esophagus in a way which still allows the animal to spit the food back out and chew it. [Nevertheless one must beware not to move the animal in the process due to the Muktzah prohibition. This applies to lifting the animal’s legs off the ground. It is however permitted to move a limb to help it eat.[29]] [Even during the week it is strongly discouraged to force feed animals, as doing so can lead to one transgressing a number of prohibitions, besides for the fact that at times it punctures the trachea or esophagus and renders the animal a Treifa.[30]]

May one force feed an animal if it cannot eat on its own?[31] It is permitted to have a gentile place food into an animal’s stomach if it cannot eat on its own. If no gentile is available then a child may do so. If there is no child available then one may do so himself [although taking care to avoid the Muktzah prohibition as explained above].

 

4. Allowing one’s animal to graze:[32]

It is permitted to allow one’s animal to graze grass on Shabbos.[33] Furthermore, it is even permitted to lead one’s animal there. It is however forbidden to lead one’s animal to Muktzah produce [such as fruits which fell on Shabbos] due to suspicion one may come to lift the Muktzah with his hands in order to feed the animal.

 

5. Giving an animal another animals leftovers:[34]

It is forbidden to give the leftover food of one species to another species if it is close to certain that the animal will not eat it.[35] Furthermore, some are stringent to avoid switching the foods of any animal and place it in front of another species, however those which are lenient are not to be protested.

 

Halacha 3 Translation

Kneading course flour for animals on Shabbos:

A. First Opinion:

Biblically: It was already explained in chapter 321 [Halacha 16] that course grain is not a knead-able product and if it is kneaded on Shabbos there are opinions which say that he is Biblically exempt [from the transgression].

Rabbinically: Nevertheless, it is Rabbinically forbidden to knead course grain for an animal or chickens as is done during the week, and rather one must implore in irregularity [in the kneading process].

The definition of an irregularity is:  Such as to knead it little by little as was explained there, or even a lot at a time although taking care to not mix it with one’s hands after placing the water in it as is the usual way that one mixes it during the week. Rather one is to mix it with a large serving spoon or a stick which contains a horizontal piece of wood on it, even many times until it mixes well. This is considered an irregularity since he is not mixing it with his hands and is not circling the spoon or wooden stick in its usual form as done during the week, but rather is mixing it by pushing it horizontally and vertically; therefore this is considered a complete irregularity.

It is as well permitted to pour it from vessel to vessel until it mixes well.

Mixing a lot at a time: It is permitted to mix the course flour in this method even a lot at a time, in accordance to the amount that his animals need, and separates the mixture into many different vessels and places it in front of each animal.

 

B. Second Opinion:

[However] according to the opinion which holds that one who kneads course flour is Biblically liable even by simply placing water into it, without kneading it, as [they hold] that the placing of the water is defined as kneading, as was explained there, then it is forbidden to place water into course flour on Shabbos even using an irregularity, unless the water was placed in from before Shabbos in which case kneading it on Shabbos does not contain a Biblical prohibition but rather a Rabbinical prohibition, which was permitted through making it with an irregularity in this form explained above.

 

C. Final Ruling

It was already explained there that one is to be stringent like the latter opinion and so is the custom.

 

Halacha 5 Translation

Cutting meat for a dog: One may cut a [hard[36]] carcass and throw its meat to dogs even if the animal died that day. It is not Muktzah even if one was not at all sick from before Shabbos and thus did not have in mind at all to feed its meat to dogs from before Shabbos.

The reason for this is because an item which one removed his mind from is only considered Muktzah if one pushed it away with his hands, as was explained in chapter 310 [Halacha 6].