May leftover food be put somewhere clean for animals to eat?
2026-10-13
F205 · Selected fatwas
Shaykh Ibn Bāz
الشيخ عبد العزيز بن عبد الله بن باز
Original Q&A · Complete published question and answer
Complete published question and answer. The permission is to place the leftovers somewhere clean for animals; the wording does not endorse wasting food in refuse.
النص العربي
السؤال الأصلي
يقول السائل من سوريا، عدنان، ومقيم في الأردن: هل يجوز أن نرمي الطعام المتبقي منذ فترة يومين -مثلا- أم نأكله كرها؟
الجواب
أنتم بالخيار، إن أكلتموه فلا بأس، وإن رميتموه في محل طيب تأكله الدواب والطيور؛ فلا بأس، يجعل في مكان طيب، في محل طيب نظيف؛ حتى تأكله الطيور أو القطط، أو في الخارج تأكله الكلاب وغيرها في محل طيب، نعم.
المقدم: أحسن الله إليكم سماحة الشيخ.
English translation
English translation prepared for SalafAlSalih.com from the cited Arabic source. It is not an official translation.
Original question
The questioner, ʿAdnān from Syria, who resides in Jordan, asks: May we throw away food that has been left for, say, two days, or must we eat it unwillingly?
Answer
You have a choice. If you eat it, there is no harm; and if you put it in a suitable place where animals and birds eat it, there is no harm. It should be put in a suitable, clean place so that birds or cats can eat it, or outside in a suitable place where dogs and other animals can eat it. Yes.
Presenter: May Allah grant you good, Your Eminence.
Source and editorial notes
Official Ibn Bāz website, fatwa 13514
الموقع الرسمي للشيخ عبد العزيز بن باز
Official Ibn Bāz website
Complete published Arabic question and answer checked against the official source, including follow-up exchanges and closing words where present. Arabic diacritics omitted, directional formatting marks removed and honorific glyphs expanded for display. Source footnotes are kept separate.