Rebecca Skloot is an award-winning science writer, and a contributing editor at 
In the interesting comments thread of this blog post, a woman named
"I am a Muslim, and we believe that a dog's saliva is unclean. If you come into contact with a dog's saliva, you have to wash whatever came into contact with the saliva seven times before it's considered "clean" again. So, I could get a dog, but I'd have a lot of washing to do. Also, since I have many friends who are Muslims, I know that they wouldn't come over anymore if there was a dog in the house. And you can be sure I wouldn't be invited over, either!I'm surprised this issue wasn't raised during the DOJ hearings as part of the discussion of whether a species ban was appropriate, and who it would negatively impact. It applies to some Orthodox Jews as well, who interpret the Talmud as forbidding dog ownership (though that is a subject of debate).
"As if that weren't enough, I live with my parents and will do so until I marry, which is common in Muslim culture and society. My mother wouldn't allow a dog in the house and is only tolerating Cali [the guide miniature horse] because she won't be inside often.
"... my reasons for exploring the possibility of a guide horse are quite different from those of all the other guide horse users I know about. I'm hoping that the DOJ decides to keep guide horses in the service animal definition, as one of my goals is to let the Muslim community know that a guide horse is an option ... I wonder how many of the people who proposed these amendments are blind or have some other disability."
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Oooow, Woo. The discussion wasn't complicated enough, let's introduce the supernatural. A valid consideration on your part, Skloot, but, please, Ms. Ramouni, if this is how your friends and family are going to treat you because of a dog, it's not the dog that needs doing away with.
I hate dog-spit, but not enough to blunder about without guidance if I was blind.
Posted by: Kamaka
| January 17, 2009 10:01 PM
This moderated post thing isn't working so well for me.
The free-for-all-internet-Wild-West-post-comments-on-your-blog seems to be OK so far, why did you restrict?
My impression: the whole point here is to go round and round after the post. Yah, there's crap, but you've gotten mostly teh good poop.
Do Typepad if you must.
Posted by: Kamaka
| January 17, 2009 10:17 PM
@Kamaka: I actually didn't mean to turn on the MT registration ... was tinkering around with the settings trying to figure out the options for dealing with spam. It's off now. Depending on how things go in the future I may do some kind of site registration, but hopefully that won't be necessary.
Posted by: Skloot | January 17, 2009 11:56 PM
[offensive and discriminatory comment deleted]
Posted by: Pat | January 18, 2009 2:20 AM
Leaving aside the religious issue and any (real or implied) criticism of its validity:
There's a perfectly good, purely physiological reason not to impose a dogs-only regulation. What if (Ceiling Cat forbid) Malia Obama needed a guide animal? We all know she loves dogs, but she's also allergic to them. Put simply, dog-allergic people need other options.
To impose a dogs-only restriction on account of some people's fussiness is just plain WRONG. People who are too fussy and intolerant to put up with service animals can bleeping take themselves elsewhere or stay home and stop interfering with the independence those animals give to so many people. I sincerely hope the DOJ wakes up and smells its own bull$#!+ before thousands of people with disabilities end up falling on their faces in it.
Posted by: The Mad LOLScientist, FCD | January 18, 2009 3:47 AM
All the religionists think, say and do irrational stuff. The muslims hardly need singling out.
Posted by: Kamaka | January 18, 2009 4:43 AM
Why shouldn't be able to take a ferret (in a cage) on a city bus, even if it's not a service animal? In Poland I frequently have transported my ferret on inter-city trains.
Posted by: Roman Werpachowski | January 18, 2009 8:18 AM
hmmmm the belief that dog saliva is unclean is not based on fact. human saliva will always infect you if you are bitten but not a dog bite. their saliva is actually cleaner than humans and can heal a cut.
cats on the other hand have some nasty germs in their mouths. so beliefs really should be based on fact, not just made up.
Posted by: bevy | March 25, 2009 3:03 AM
I am just curious if this was written in the Koran? I thought it was only pigs that they thought was unclean. What happens if the miniature horse licks her....is it cleaner than the dog?
Posted by: Ajlouny | June 28, 2009 1:33 AM