Raising Muslim children in the West to have an aversion to pigs

Undoubtedly the
concepts and ideas that a child learns about and experiences in the early
stages of his upbringing will have an impact on him for much longer than the
parents and teachers of the child themselves realise, and that does not go
away once that stage is passed; rather they will remain and form an
important part of his make-up and thinking, and will have a clear impact on
the formation of his identity and culture. 

In Saheeh
al-Bukhaari (6130) and Muslim (2440) it is narrated that ‘Aa’ishah (may
Allah be pleased with her) said: I used to play with dolls in the house of
the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), and I had friends
who would play with me, and when the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace
of Allah be upon him) came in, they would hide away from him, but he would
send them one after another to play with me. 

The scholars
stated that Islam only granted a concession to children to play with such
toys, even though it forbids images and the making of images, because of the
role that playing with such toys plays in preparing the child mentally for
what he will do in the future. 

Al-Haafiz Ibn
Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) said: 

An exception is
made for this from the prohibition on keeping images. This was stated
definitively by ‘Iyaad and was narrated from the majority. They regarded it
as permissible to sell toys to girls to train them from an early age in
caring for their houses and children.

End quote from
Fath al-Baari, 10/527 

Undoubtedly the
pig is not only an impure animal or something that is haraam to eat, or
other things that are said about it or other Islamic rulings that have to do
with it; it is also a cultural element of the Christian West, and part of
the identity of those nations. 

In Saheeh
al-Bukhaari (2222) and Saheeh Muslim (155), it is narrated that
Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said:
“By
the One in Whose hand is my soul, soon the Son of Maryam) will descend among
you as a just judge, he will break the cross, kill the pigs and abolish the
jizyah, and wealth will become so abundant that no one will accept it.”

Ibn Battaal (may
Allah have mercy on him) said: 

The reason for
breaking the cross and killing the pigs is because they are part of the
religion of the Christians who are fabricators and transgressors. Hence the
Prophet told us that ‘Eesa will change what they attributed to him, as
Muhammad changed it and told them that they were following falsehood in that
regard. This indicates that ‘Eesa will come to confirm the corrections
introduced by the law of Muhammad, and will judge with justice between
people.

End quote from
Sharh Saheeh al-Bukhaari, by Ibn Battaal, 6/604 

An-Nawawi (may
Allah have mercy on him) said: 

This indicates we
should object to evil deeds and remove them, and remove the symbols of evil,
and killing the pigs comes under this heading. It is also indicative of the
view favoured by our madhhab and that of the majority, which is that if we
find a pig in non-Muslim lands or elsewhere, and we are able to kill it, we
should kill it; and it proves false the odd opinion held by some of our
companions and others, who said that pigs should be left alone if they are
not causing any harm.

End quote from
Sharh Muslim, 11/221 

To sum up:

Pigs are an animal
that is not respected, and one of the symbols of disbelief and lies against
Allah, may He be exalted. So it is not right for a Muslim to raise his
children to like them or pay attention to them or be fond of them, whether
that is in a picture book or a toy or a cartoon and so on. Rather what is
prescribed is to point out that they are connected to their false religion
and are one of its symbols, and that they have no protection or sanctity in
sharee‘ah, and we should explain that according to the child’s level of
understanding, so that when he grows up, he will have a proper understanding
of the shar‘i rulings having to do with them. 

With regard to
making your children avoid seeing pigs, if what is meant by that is a
passing glance or seeing a picture of a pig in passing, this is something
that is difficult to do, and we do not think that it is necessary. Rather
all that is required is that the child should not become used to them or
care about them or pay any attention to them. 

And Allah knows
best.