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Joke: A rabbi is harboring a secret — he has always wanted to try pork. One night he drives across town to the furthest restaurant from his shul and orders an entire suckling pig. Just as the waiter sets down the full roast pig with an apple in its mouth, he sees a group of her congregants has walked in and is watching him, their mouths wide open. The rabbi widens his eyes, “So nu, what kind of place is this?” he says. “You order an apple and look how it’s served!”

(יג) וְיָד֙ תִּהְיֶ֣ה לְךָ֔ מִח֖וּץ לַֽמַּחֲנֶ֑ה וְיָצָ֥אתָ שָּׁ֖מָּה חֽוּץ׃

(יד) וְיָתֵ֛ד תִּהְיֶ֥ה לְךָ֖ עַל־אֲזֵנֶ֑ךָ וְהָיָה֙ בְּשִׁבְתְּךָ֣ ח֔וּץ וְחָפַרְתָּ֣ה בָ֔הּ וְשַׁבְתָּ֖ וְכִסִּ֥יתָ אֶת־צֵאָתֶֽךָ׃

(טו) כִּי֩ יי אֱלֹקֶ֜יךָ מִתְהַלֵּ֣ךְ ׀ בְּקֶ֣רֶב מַחֲנֶ֗ךָ לְהַצִּֽילְךָ֙ וְלָתֵ֤ת אֹיְבֶ֙יךָ֙ לְפָנֶ֔יךָ וְהָיָ֥ה מַחֲנֶ֖יךָ קָד֑וֹשׁ וְלֹֽא־יִרְאֶ֤ה בְךָ֙ עֶרְוַ֣ת דָּבָ֔ר וְשָׁ֖ב מֵאַחֲרֶֽיךָ׃ {ס}

(13) Further, there shall be an area for you outside the camp, where you may relieve yourself.

(14) With your gear you shall have a spike, and when you have squatted you shall dig a hole with it and cover up your excrement.

(15) Since your God Adonai moves about in your camp to protect you and to deliver your enemies to you, let your camp be holy; let [God] not find anything unseemly among you and turn away from you.

Since the Torah says that it is "unseemly" and that it can not be in the camps of the Israelites, we know that fecal excrement is unholy. Thus, it is prohibited to pray next to it. However, the Gemara is about to discuss how dirty/old it needs to be that you can not say the Shema next to it.

דְּאָמַר רַבָּה בַּר רַב הוּנָא אָמַר רַב: צוֹאָה, אֲפִילּוּ כְּחֶרֶס — אֲסוּרָה.

וְהֵיכִי דָּמֵי צוֹאָה כְּחֶרֶס? אָמַר רַבָּה בַּר בַּר חָנָה אָמַר רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן: כׇּל זְמַן שֶׁזּוֹרְקָה וְאֵינָהּ נִפְרֶכֶת. וְאִיכָּא דְאָמְרִי: כׇּל זְמַן שֶׁגּוֹלְלָהּ וְאֵינָהּ נִפְרֶכֶת.

אָמַר רָבִינָא: הֲוָה קָאֵימְנָא קַמֵּיהּ דְּרַב יְהוּדָה מִדִּיפְתִּי חֲזָא צוֹאָה, אֲמַר לִי: עַיֵּין אִי קָרְמוּ פָּנֶיהָ אִי לָא. אִיכָּא דְאָמְרִי הָכִי אֲמַר לֵיהּ: עַיֵּין אִי מִפְּלַאי אִפְּלוֹיֵי.

מַאי הָוֵי עֲלַהּ? אִתְּמַר: צוֹאָה כְּחֶרֶס, אֲמֵימַר אָמַר אֲסוּרָה, וּמַר זוּטְרָא אָמַר מוּתֶּרֶת. אָמַר רָבָא: הִלְכְתָא: צוֹאָה כְּחֶרֶס אֲסוּרָה.

Rabba bar Rav Huna said that Rav said: Uttering sacred matters opposite feces, even if it is as dry as earthenware, is prohibited.

The Gemara asks: What are the circumstances of feces like earthenware? Rabba bar bar Ḥana said that Rabbi Yoḥanan said: As long as one throws it and it does not crumble. And some say: As long as one can roll it and it does not crumble. Ravina said: I was standing before Rav Yehuda of Difti when he saw feces. He said to me: Examine it and see whether or not its surface has dried sufficiently to form a crust. Some say that he said to him as follows: Examine it and see if it is cracked, as only then is it considered dry.

The Gemara asks: What conclusion was reached about this? It was stated: feces as dry as earthenware; Ameimar said: It is prohibited, and Mar Zutra said: It is permitted. Rava said that the halakha is: Feces as dry as earthenware it is prohibited.

We are now about to go see a bunch of law codes that discuss the Halakha for this particular issue.

(ז) הָיְתָה צוֹאָה יְבֵשָׁה כְּחֶרֶשׂ אָסוּר לִקְרוֹת כְּנֶגְדָּהּ. וְאִם הָיְתָה יְבֵשָׁה יוֹתֵר מֵחֶרֶשׂ עַד שֶׁאִם זְרָקָהּ תִּתְפָּרֵךְ הֲרֵי הִיא כְּעָפָר וּמֻתָּר לִקְרוֹת כְּנֶגְדָּהּ.

(7) One may not recite the Shema next to feces, even if they are as dry as a shard. However, if they were so dry that, if thrown away, they would crumble, one may recite the Shema facing them.

(א) דין צואה יבישה. ובו ב סעיפים:
צואה יבישה כ"כ שאם יזרקנה תתפרך הרי היא כעפר ומותר לקרות כנגדה והוא שלא יהא בה ריח רע:

(1) The Laws of Dry Excrement, containing 2 s'ifim
Excrement which is so dry that if one throws it, it crumbles apart, behold it is like dirt and it is permitted to recite [the Sh'ma] in front of it. And this is if it does not have a bad smell.

(א) לענין צואה כמה תהא לחה ויהא אסור לקרות כנגדה אסיקנא.

In relation to excrement which is like moist, it is prohibited to say the Shema. This is the issue that we are concerned with.