Sunday, June 08, 2008

Israeli Rabbi Sticks His Neck Out

So to speak:
An Israeli rabbi has declared giraffe meat and milk to be kosher, although his pronouncement is unlikely to have observant Jews clamouring to consume the exotic products, a daily reported on Friday.
No, the article does not address where exactly you would shecht a giraffe.

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3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Mmmmh - I am just waiting to taste one of the delicious giraffe sandwiches...

SuperRaizy said...

You hit the nail on the head. A giraffe has split hooves and chews its cud, so it's kosher, but it is not known which spot on its long neck is the right spot for shechting. That's why it's never eaten.

Anonymous said...

No Raizy, that's a myth.

"
But there is no need to equivocate; the specific anatomic boundaries (cited in Chullin 45a; Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah 20:1-2) for the ritual slaughter of all animals apply to the giraffe as well. For a pigeon, the valid region is a few inches long; for a cow, over 12 inches; and for a giraffe, close to six feet. A kashrut expert once quipped that "anyone who does not know where to shecht a giraffe either knows nothing about the laws of shechitah or could not hit the side of a barn with a baseball.""