פירוש על שבת 24:4

מחתכין את הדלועין – that are detached before the cattle and even though they usually are not the food for animals, they exist only for humans.

Introduction This mishnah deals with giving food on Shabbat to animals in cases where the food was not “prepared” for them on the eve of Shabbat. “Prepared” here means that before Shabbat this food was not designated to eventually become animal food. “Prepared” is the opposite of “muktzeh”.

ואת הנבלה – that had become ritually forbidden by unskillful slaughtering that day, and even though it was at twilight, it stood for humans and not for animals.

One may cut up gourds in front of beasts, and a carcass in front of dogs. Rabbi Judah says: if it was not carcass by the eve of Shabbat it is forbidden, because it was not prepared. Gourds are normally eaten by human beings and are too expensive to be given to animals. Nevertheless, the mishnah rules that if one has gourds one may cut them up and give them to one’s beasts. The mishnah refers to a carcass of an animal that was alive when Shabbat began and became a carcass on Shabbat itself. In such a case it was certainly not “prepared” before Shabbat to be given as dog food on Shabbat. According to the first opinion, it is nevertheless permitted to give the carcass to the dogs. Rabbi Judah disagrees and holds that the carcass is “muktzeh” and may therefore not be handled at all on Shabbat.

רבי יהודה אומר אם לא היתה נבילה מע"ש אסורה – for anything that is appropriate for humans, it is not set aside for animals, and even if it is sick from the Eve of the Sabbath, we hold that it would heal, but the Halakha is not according to Rabbi Yehuda.