Assalamu alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh

Praise be to Allaah.

There are six conditions for the udhiyah:

-1-

It should be one of the an’aam class of animals, which are: camels, cattle, sheep and goats, because
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And for every nation We have appointed religious ceremonies, that they may mention the Name of
Allaah over the beast of cattle that He has given them for food”

[al-Hajj 22:34]

Baheemat al-an’aam (translated here as “beast of cattle”) includes camels, cattle and sheep. This is what
is well known among the Arabs, and this was the view of al-Hasan, Qataadah and others.

-2-

It should have reached the age stipulated in sharee’ah, which is six months for a sheep and the age at
which the animal is considered to be an adult for any other animal, because the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Do not sacrifice anything but an adult animal, unless it is difficult
for you, in which case you may slaughter a six-month old lamb (jadh’ah).” Narrated by Muslim.

A mature animal means one that is considered to be an adult.

For cattle, it means one that is two years old.

For sheep it means one that is a year old.

The jadh’ah is that which is half a year old. So it is not correct to sacrifice a camel, cow or goat that has
not yet reached maturity, or a sheep that is less than six months old.

-3-

It should be free of any faults that would render it unsuitable for sacrifice, of which there are four:

1 – An obvious defect in one eye, such as when the eye is sunken in its socket, or when it sticks out like a
button, or is white and obviously defective.

2 – Obvious sickness, whose symptoms are clearly apparent in the animal, such as fever that prevents it
from grazing and causes loss of appetite; mange that obviously affects its flesh or its health; deep
wounds that affect its health, and so on.

3 – Obvious lameness, which prevents the animal from walking normally.

4 – Emaciation that leaves no marrow in the bones, when the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) was asked about what should be avoided in udhiyah, he gestured with his hand and said:
“Four: a lame animal which is obviously lame, a one-eyed animal whose defect is obvious, a sick animal
whose sickness is obvious, and an emaciated animal that no one would choose.” Narrated by Maalik in
al-Muwatta’ from the hadeeth of al-Bara’ ibn ‘Aazib. According to a hadeeth narrated from him in al-
Sunan, he said: “The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) stood up among
us and said: ‘There are four which are not permissible for sacrifice,’” and he mentioned something
similar. Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Irwa’ al-Ghaleel, 1148.
These four faults render an animal unsuitable for sacrifice, and they include similar faults or more severe
faults. So the following animals are also unsuitable for sacrifice:

1- One that is blind in both eyes.

2- One that has eaten more than it can stand, until the danger has passed.

3- One that has encountered difficulty in giving birth, until all danger has passed.

4- One that has suffered something that could kill it, such as strangulation or a fall from a high place,
until the danger has passed.

5- One that is unable to walk because of a defect.

6- One that has had one of its forelegs or hind legs cut off.

If these are added to the four defects mentioned in the text, the number of those that cannot be offered
as sacrifices reaches ten – these six and the four mentioned above.

-4-

The animal should belong to the person who is offering the sacrifice, or he should have permission for
that either on the grounds of sharee’ah or from the owner. The sacrifice is not valid if the animal
slaughtered does not belong to the person who is sacrificing it, such as one that has been taken by force,
stolen, or taken on the basis of a false claim, etc, because it is not permissible to draw closer to Allaah by
means of sin. A sacrifice offered by the guardian of an orphan from the orphan’s property is valid if that
is customary and if he feels sad about not offering a sacrifice.
A sacrifice offered by a guardian from the property of the person under his care is valid, if done with
permission.

-5-

No one else should have any rights to the sacrificial animal; the sacrifice of an animal that is held in
pledge is not valid.

-6-

It should be slaughtered at the time specified in sharee’ah, which is from after the Eid prayer on the Day
of Sacrifice until sunset on the last of the days of al-Tashreeq, which is the 13th of Dhu’l-Hijjah. So the
days when the sacrificed may be offered are four: the day of Eid after the prayer, and the three days
after that. Whoever slaughters it before the Eid prayer is over, or after sun sets on the 13th of Dhu’l-
Hijjah, his sacrifice is not valid, because of the hadeeth narrated by al-Bukhaari from al-Bara’ ibn ‘Aazib
(may Allaah be pleased with him), according to which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) said: “Whoever slaughters (his sacrifice) before the prayer, it is meat that he has brought to
his family, but that is not the sacrifice.” And he narrated that Jundub ibn Sufyaan al-Bajali (may Allaah be
pleased with him) said: “I heard the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
saying, ‘Whoever slaughters the sacrifice before he prays, let him replace it with another.’” And it was
narrated that Nubayshah al-Hadhali (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: “The Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: ‘The days of al-Tashreeq are the days of eating,
drinking and remembering Allaah.’” Narrated by Muslim.

But if he has an excuse for delaying it beyond the days of Tashreeq, such as if the animal ran away,
without there being any negligence on his part, and he could not find it until after the time was over, or
he appointed someone else to slaughter it and that person forgot until the time was over, then there is
nothing wrong with slaughtering it after the appointed time. This is by analogy with the one who sleeps
and misses a prayer, or forgets it – he should pray it as soon as he wakes up or remember it.

It is permissible to slaughter the udhiyah at any time, night or day, but it is better to slaughter it during
the day, and it is better to slaughter on the day of Eid after the two khutbahs. Each day is better than the
day that follows it, because that means that one is hastening to do good.
Source: https://islamqa.info/en/36755

Jazak Allahu khairan