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Are you allowed to kill flies and other pests (mice, mosquitoes, etc.) or would that go under the prohibition of Tzar Balay Chaim?

HodofHod
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SimchasTorah
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2 Answers2

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Reb Moshe in Iggras Moshe (חושן משפט חלק ב' סימן מ''ז) says if it is disgusting and or the creature ruins food,or mosquitoes who bother the person the answer is YES. Reb Moshe in an Illustration of his Tzidkus (righteousness) adds of course you should try not do it by hand instead with fly traps and the like because killing by hand desensitizes you and ruins your character. He brings the Ohr Hachaim Hakodsh (דברים י"ג י"ח) who says that even the person who kills for the Beis Din and a Shochet needs a special protection against this provided by the Torah because he is directly involved in doing a Mitzvah but here where he is just ridding himself of a bother he should try his utmost not to do it by hand.

SimchasTorah
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    As Anonymous Chasid answered below, your question was "Are you allowed..." and since ליכא איסור כלל, the answer is "YES". – WAF Jan 27 '11 at 16:32
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Tzar Balay Chaim means causing pain. Killing is explicitly excluded (as long as you do it properly) since once dead the animal no longer feels pain.

Ariel
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    Can't it feel pain during its death process? – Double AA Jul 27 '12 at 14:20
  • @DoubleAA Depends on how you do it - many deaths are instant, and they kill too fast for the animal to feel pain. In any case flies and mosquitoes do not have the ability to feel pain. Also, Tzar Balay Chaim implies unnecessary pain. If you need to kill the animal (and people have permission to kill animals) that is not included, as long as you do it as quickly as you can. – Ariel Jul 27 '12 at 20:55
  • If I have permission to harm an animal I can do that too in a way that minimizes pain. What is unique about 'killing'? – Double AA Jul 27 '12 at 20:56
  • @DoubleAA Since when does the torah give you permission to harm an animal? (i.e. cause it pain, but don't kill it?) Actually only in one case: where it is needed to save a human life (medical research usually). But otherwise, no you do not have permission to do that. – Ariel Jul 27 '12 at 20:58
  • @DoubleAA Oops, looks like you edited your comment. – Ariel Jul 27 '12 at 20:59
  • You only have permission to harm animals when it is for some human benefit and you only have permission to kill animals when it is for some human benefit. In both cases pain should be minimized. I see nothing unique about killing, as you imply in your answer. – Double AA Jul 27 '12 at 21:01
  • @DoubleAA Harming an animal, without causing it pain (for no reason presumably) is not necessarily allowed. That would go under bal tashchit. The thing about killing the animal is the pain stops, it doesn't continue. We are mixing topics a bit: Do you mean harm/kill for a reason, or for no reason? – Ariel Jul 27 '12 at 21:01
  • You say 'killing is excluded'. Are you saying you can kill animals for absolutely no reason? – Double AA Jul 27 '12 at 21:03
  • @DoubleAA Of course pain should be minimized - that's the whole POINT of killing it - the pain is instantly stopped. The fact that is has momentary pain does not override your need to kill them. – Ariel Jul 27 '12 at 21:03
  • @DoubleAA No, I most definitely do not say that! You can only kill the animal if you have a reason. – Ariel Jul 27 '12 at 21:03
  • Then I don't see how killing is excluded. It seems to have the same din as everything else. – Double AA Jul 27 '12 at 21:03
  • If you kill for a reason then your reason overrides the momentary pain the animal feels. Harming the animal (i.e. causing it pain, and not stopping the pain) is only allowed to save a human life. – Ariel Jul 27 '12 at 21:04
  • Ok I finally understand our disagreement. Can you source your latter statement? My impression was that any animal pain is permitted (midin tzaar baalei chayim) for any human benefit. – Double AA Jul 27 '12 at 21:07
  • @DoubleAA Unlike the normal case of saving a life which needs to be "lefanaynu" harming an animal can also be for a theoretical situation. What about the if the human benefit is "the person enjoys it"? Or other such bad reasons? – Ariel Jul 27 '12 at 21:50
  • @DoubleAA The torah does not allow muzzling an animal while using it plow because if it can't eat that causes it tza'ar. Even though the human will benefit from the animal not eating the crops. So clearly not all animal pain is allowed, even if it's for human benefit. – Ariel Jul 27 '12 at 21:54
  • @DoubleAA I found this link very illuminating: http://download.yutorah.org/1986/1053/735706.pdf Particularly the stories it brings from the Gemara - the one on page 6 about a while mule seemed quite applicable here. Page 7 (of the pdf, page 25 as written on the page) is basically exactly what I am saying. – Ariel Jul 27 '12 at 21:56
  • Re. whether tza'ar ba'alei chayyim applies when killing an animal, see the machlokes described in this comment. – Fred Mar 21 '13 at 01:22
  • Also see this comment from that thread regarding R' Moshe's opinion permitting killing pests: "The concept of לצורך האדם refers to a tangible benefit, which is why you need an additional source (from פריקה) to teach you about לכבוד האדם. Pleasure is not a tangible human benefit, and לכבוד האדם, within the context of the teshuvah, refers to the removal of a nuisance." – Fred Mar 21 '13 at 01:29