"I heard Anas saying: 'Once we provoked a rabbit at Marr Az-Zahran. So the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) rushed after it, and I caught up to it and captured it. I brought it to Abu Talhah who slaughtered it with Marwah. He sent me with its legs - or its thighs - to the Prophet (ﷺ) so he could eat it.'" He (Hisham) said: "I said: 'He ate it?' He said:'He accepted it.'" [Abu 'Eisa said:] There are narrations on this topic from Jubair, 'Ammar, Muhammad bin Safwan, and they say: Muhammad bin Saifi. This Hadith is Hasan Sahih. This is acted upon according to the people of knowledge. They saw no harm in eating rabbit. Some of the people of knowledge disliked eating rabbit, they said that it menstruates.
حَدَّثَنَا مَحْمُودُ بْنُ غَيْلاَنَ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو دَاوُدَ، أَخْبَرَنَا شُعْبَةُ، عَنْ هِشَامِ بْنِ زَيْدِ بْنِ أَنَسٍ، قَالَ سَمِعْتُ أَنَسًا، يَقُولُ أَنْفَجْنَا أَرْنَبًا بِمَرِّ الظَّهْرَانِ فَسَعَى أَصْحَابُ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم خَلْفَهَا فَأَدْرَكْتُهَا فَأَخَذْتُهَا فَأَتَيْتُ بِهَا أَبَا طَلْحَةَ فَذَبَحَهَا بِمَرْوَةٍ فَبَعَثَ مَعِي بِفَخِذِهَا أَوْ بِوَرِكِهَا إِلَى النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَأَكَلَهُ . قَالَ قُلْتُ أَكَلَهُ قَالَ قَبِلَهُ . قَالَ أَبُو عِيسَى وَفِي الْبَابِ عَنْ جَابِرٍ وَعَمَّارٍ وَمُحَمَّدِ بْنِ صَفْوَانَ وَيُقَالُ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ صَيْفِيٍّ . وَهَذَا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ صَحِيحٌ . وَالْعَمَلُ عَلَى هَذَا عِنْدَ أَكْثَرِ أَهْلِ الْعِلْمِ لاَ يَرَوْنَ بِأَكْلِ الأَرْنَبِ بَأْسًا . وَقَدْ كَرِهَ بَعْضُ أَهْلِ الْعِلْمِ أَكْلَ الأَرْنَبِ وَقَالُوا إِنَّهَا تَدْمِي .
Tirmizi
The Book on Food • Hadith 1848