Halacha l’Moshe MiSinai
27. The Gemara and poskim explain that there is a halacha l’Moshe miSinai that there are five primary p’sulim of shechita – שהייה , דרסה , חלדה , הגרמה , and עיקור (גמ' חולין דף כ''ז ע''א ). If a shochet does not know hilchos shechita and the five p’sulim of shechita and their halachos, one may not eat from his shechita (גמ' חולין דף ט' ע''א, שו''ע סי' כ''ג ס''א ). Thus, we will now cite some of the main halachos of the five p’sulim of shechita and some examples so that the general public will be aware of them.
שהייה
28. The simanim must be cut in one continuous act of cutting without any pauses. If one began shechting and then lifted his hand or stopped shechting even without lifting his hand – whether by accident or on purpose, whether under duress or willingly – and then continued and completed the shechita, the animal is a neveila d’oraisa, as there was a pause in the shechita (שו''ע סי' כ''ג ס''ב ).
29. Length of the pause. The Gemara and poskim explain that the length of the pause is the amount of time a single shechita takes; this is different for large animals [i.e., cattle], small animals [i.e., sheep and goats], and birds (שו''ע שם ). However, since nowadays we are not proficient in the length of this pause, the minhag is to consider a shechita posul if there was any pause at any point during the act of shechting, whether for a bird or an animal (רמ''א שם ), even in a situation of serious financial loss (ש''ך סק''ז ). Even if one paused while shechting the last bit of the simanim, after he already shechted the majority of the simanim – which strictly speaking is kosher – the minhag is to consider it treif (רמ ''א ס''ה ).
דרסה
30. A shechita must be performed with a cutting motion, i.e., moving a knife back and forth to cut the simanim. If one cuts the simanim all at once more like a chopping motion without a back-and-forth motion or presses downward to cut as if cutting a radish, that is called דרסה and is posul (שו''ע כ''ד ס''א ). This takes great discernment, as a shochet is allowed to apply a bit of downward pressure while moving the knife back and forth in order to cut, but the action must be more cutting than pressing.
31. Sharp knife. Thus, the knife must be sharp so that it can cut with a back-and-forth motion without requiring much downward pressure (מנח''י ס''א ).
32. Knife length. The knife’s length must correlate to the width of the neck of the animal being shechted. If the blade is too short, it can easily lead to דרסה as the shochet will be pressing more than cutting. Thus, l’chatchila the knife’s length must be twice as long as the thing being shechted so that there is enough room on the knife to go back and forth and not end up doing דריסה (שו''ע סי' כ''ד ס''ב ).
33. Finger on the knife. One must make sure not to put a finger on the knife’s blade or on the part of the handle near the blade (דעת קדושים סק''ג ) while shechting so as not to end up doing דרסה [see picture]. One should hold the knife handle with all his fingers (שמל''ח סק''ח ).
חלדה
34. חלדה is concealing the knife under anything, whether a foreign object or a part of the bird or animal. If one does this, the shechita is posul (שו''ע כ''ד ס''ז ). The knife must be visible during the entire act of shechita. The word חלדה is related to the word חולדה [weasel], which sometimes hides and is sometimes out in the open.
35. If one inserted the knife under the simanim and shechted upward or inserted the knife under the upper siman and shechted it upward and then did the bottom one properly, it is חלדה and posul (שו''ע שם ).
36. If one inserted the knife under the skin, tangled wool, or a cloth tied to or wrapped over the neck, that is חלדה and the shechita is posul (שו''ע שם ס''ח ).
37. Plucking feathers. When birds have large feathers on their necks at the site of shechita, there is a concern that the feathers will cover the knife during the shechita, leading to the p’sul of חלדה . Thus, they should be plucked before the shechita (ש''ך שם סק''ח ).
38. Wool on sheep’s neck. Similarly, when a sheep has wool on its neck at the site of shechita, it should be plucked or shaven before the shechita to avoid the p’sul of חלדה (רמ''א שם ). Some rely on making a path by separating the wool to either side and shechting within the path in the hairs such that the hairs do not cover the knife.
הגרמה
39. A shochet must l’chatchila shecht in the middle of the length of the neck (רמ''א סי' כ' ס''ב ). It is still kosher if it was not shechted in the middle, but if it was shechted outside the boundaries given by Chazal, it is considered הגרמה and posul.
40. Trachea. The upper limit of the shechita area toward the head is from the “slope of the cap” and up, i.e., after the large ring [the ring that is bigger than the other rings in the trachea]. The shechita area continues until the first point where the trachea is covered by the lungs when inflated. For a bird, the shechita area of the trachea goes down until the crop.
41. Esophagus. The shechita area begins toward the head where the esophagus contracts when it is cut (שו''ע סי' כ' ס''ב ), which, for a large animal, is approximately four thumbs breadths from its point of attachment (רמ''א שם ). For small animals, chayos, and ofos, this measurement depends on how big or small it is, and it is relative to the length of four thumbs breadths on an animal (שם ). Toward the body, the shechita area continues until the place that resembles the stomach material. For a bird, the shechita area of the esophagus is until the crop, just like the trachea.
42. Giraffe. The poskim say the giraffe is a kosher species since it has the two signs of chewing the cud and split hooves (עי' שיחת חולין דף תי''ח ). As far as a mesora, that depends on the machlokes whether a chaya or beheima may also only be eaten with a mesora or a mesora is only required for eating birds (ש''ך סי' פ' סק''א, פמ''ג בשפ''ד שם , חזו''א קובץ אגרות א, צ''ט וב' פ''ג, חכמת אדם כלל ל''ו ).
43. Where to shecht it. When asked why we do not eat giraffe, Jewish children commonly answer that it is because we do not know where to shecht it. However, this is simply a mistake. Anywhere on the neck within the boundaries mentioned above is kosher for shechita, as mentioned (שיחת חולין שם ). Thus, that is not the reason we do not eat it. It is because it is not a common animal, and it is a protected species. Even non-Jews do not eat it due to its endangerment. Also, its meat is very tough.
עיקור
44. עיקור is when both, or even one, of the simanim were detached or dislocated from their point of attachment before or during the shechita (בה''ג הובא בתוס' חולין דף ט' ע''א ד''ה כלהו, שו''ע שם סט''ו). Shechting with a nicked knife which causes the tearing of the simanim is also a type of עיקור (ר ש''י שם ).
