Chullin 58: Poisons and Becoming a Treifa

Today a new Mishna teaches us about a number of conditions that cause an animal to be poisoned.  If the animal were still alive, it may or may not be a tereifa.  The rabbis walk us through these details:

• if an animal eats oleander it is kosher
• if an animal is bitten by a snake or drinks poison, it is kosher but cannot be eaten due to danger
• Shmuel says that some poisons render an animal a tereifa
• an animal that eats the substance ferula assafoetida, which pierces the intestines, it is a tereifa
• poisonous plants have been proven to be medicinally beneficial when used in small doses

Why is a poisoned animal not considered a tereifa?  It is sure to die within a year.  The Ra'avad teaches that poison can be treated with medicine.  Other rabbis suggest that because there is no immediate terminal injury, it cannot be considered a tereifa.

Perhaps the rabbis are working to interpret these laws so that they suit the needs of their communities.  Calling an animal a tereifa if it is poisoned might be disadvantageous; calling an animal a tereifa at all might be financially impractical.