DY: Ironically enough, the Simlah Chadashah seems to be slightly misinformed about the issue here. (He also has the misconception that they say Allahu Akbar and not Bismillah, which I find interesting, but that’s a side point.) He thinks it’s better to say it before the Brachah to avoid a Hefsek. But that idea isn’t relevant. The Muslims have held for many centuries (at least back into the 1400s, maybe earlier) that the Brachah that we make before Shechitah counts as praising God’s name while slaughtering. So they think you don’t have to say Bismillah when Shechting the first animal. The problem (for them, not us) is that we hold that one Brachah is Poter many Shechitos. They hold that Bismillah must be said over each and every animal. So the only time the case the Simlah Chadashah is dealing with comes up is when Shechting multiple animals and in between each Shechitah after the first.
