KOTA KINABALU – A Muslim animal advocate is determined to encourage and educate children to respect and love all animals, particularly dogs, which are traditionally considered unclean in Islam.
A doctor in psychology in one of the local universities here, Dr Roslee Abbas has been conducting educational talks with primary school children in the community through the Helping Animals Rescue Team (Heart), an organisation that he founded in 2012.
“I use verses from the Quran during my talk to make them understand that Islam wants us to love all Allah’s creations, and that includes all animals, and also dogs.
“My talk is targeting children because it is easier to educate and guide them. Older people often have fixed mindsets and would not change their views,” he told The Vibes.
Roslee also said that he wants the children to get rid of their fears towards dogs, especially stray dogs.
“Among others, I would teach them how to read dogs’ body language, and to handle the situation when they meet stray dogs that bark at them or chase them; they must remain calm, stand still, or sit down. They must never provoke the dog, like throwing stones at them, because this will trigger the dogs to attack as an act of defending themselves,” he said.
To date, Roslee had conducted about 10 talks involving more than 300 students here.
The 58-year-old said that he was driven to initiate the talk after seeing the locals, who seem to be dependent on others when it comes to helping animals in dire need.
“For instance, when people encounter an injured cat, they would call for animal rescuers to conduct the rescue. However, by the time the rescue reach the scene, the cat would have died.
“They should instead get the cat to the vet immediately, or ask their friends or animal organisations on what they can do to help.
“This is why I came up with the idea to educate the young ones to be reliable and responsible towards animals, especially the 'homeless' (strays). I teach, guide and educate them to love animals. When you love animals, you would definitely be driven to help these animals whenever possible,” he said.
Roslee said that he has never received complaints from Muslim parents on his talk about dogs despite that it is a rather sensitive issue for some.
“I love to tell them verses from the Quran to let them know how Muslims should view dogs. There are many examples in the Quran. One of it is when Prophet Muhammad and his entourage were moving from Madinah to Makkah.
“A female dog and its puppies passed them, and the Prophet told his disciples not to harm the dogs and let them pass. Concerned with the dogs, the Prophet then told one of his companions to guide and assist the dogs until they reach their destination.
“Another example is when Prophet Muhammad’s disciple asked what will happen to one particular prostitute at the time after she dies. The Prophet then said, heaven for this prostitute.
“The disciples were in disbelief, but the Prophet then explained that three days before the said woman dies, she encountered a dog that was starving. She then used her veil to scoop water and fed the dog.
“When she dies, Allah forgave all her sins for her act of kindness towards the dog.
“The Quran tells a lot of stories about all animals, and it all teaches one to love and be kind to living things, all Allah’s creations,” he said.
Roslee said though he does not know how effective his talks are, he is determined to continue his mission to spread awareness and “plant” love for all living things in the hearts of children here.
“Our organisation has been conducting rescues, but unlike what people may think, Heart is actually small with limited resources. We are also a non-governmental organisation which means that we are not funded by any party.
“Hence, people call us for rescues a lot, but we cannot handle all the cases due to limited resources. I realised that a 24/7 rescue is also not the ultimate solution to helping animals. People have to be kind to animals so that there will not be cases of abuse and animal cruelty, which is occurring daily here in Sabah and is very alarming.
“If we could have more people caring and loving animals, then we will have more people wanting to help animals. When people are kind to them, especially the homeless ones, then all the animals will then have a better place to live,” he added. – The Vibes, March 21, 2022
