Recently there has emerged the phenomenon of selling animals and birds that have been stuffed. We hope that you could explain to us the ruling on collecting stuffed animals and birds, and on selling them. What should the muhtasib (religious police in the Islamic state who checks that transactions and products are proper and correct) do when he encounters this phenomenon?
Praise be to Allaah.
Collecting
stuffed birds and animals, whether they are creatures which it is haraam
to collect when alive or it is halaal to collect when alive, is a waste of
money and an extravagance in which the cost of stuffing them is
squandered. Allaah forbade wasteful extravagance and the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) forbade wasting money. And
this is also a means of making images of animate beings, and hanging them
up or setting them up is haraam. It is not permissible to sell them or
collect them. The muhtasib has to explain to people that this is
not allowed, and he should try to prevent their sale in the markets.