Assalam aliekum
What rulings are there for hunting animals?
Lana
Salam Alaikum
Here are the rules below:
Slaughtering and Hunting of Animals
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2592. * If an animal whose meat is halal to eat, is slaughtered in the manner which will be described later, irrespective of whether it is domesticated or not, its meat becomes halal and its body becomes Pak after it has died. But camels, fish and locust become halal without their heads being slaughtered, as will be explained later.
2593. If a wild animal like deer, partridge and wild goat whose meat is halal to eat, or a halal animal which was a domestic one but turned wild later, like, a cow or a camel which runs away and becomes wild, is hunted in accordance with the laws which will be explained later, it is Pak and halal to eat. But, a domestic animal like sheep and fowl whose meat is halal to eat, or tamed wild animal whose meat is halal to eat does not become Pak and halal by hunting.
2594. A wild animal whose meat is halal to eat becomes Pak and halal to eat by hunting if it is capable of running away or flying. Based on this, the young one of a deer which cannot run away, and the young one of a partridge which cannot fly, do not become Pak and halal to eat by hunting. And if a deer and its young one which cannot run are hunted with one bullet, the deer will be halal but its young one will be haraam to eat.
2595. If an animal like fish, whose meat is halal to eat and whose blood does not gush, dies a natural death, it is Pak but its meat cannot be eaten.
2596. The dead body of an animal whose meat is haraam to eat, and whose blood does not gush, like, a snake, is Pak but does not become halal by slaughtering.
2597. * Dogs and pigs do not become Pak by slaughtering and hunting and it is also haraam to eat their meat. And if a flesh-eating animal like wolf and leopard is slaughtered in the manner which will be mentioned later, or is hunted by means of bullet etc. it is Pak, but its meat does not become halal for consumption. And if it is hunted down by a hunting dog, then its body cannot be considered as Pak.
2598. Elephant, bear, monkey are classified as predators. But the insects or the small animals who live in the holes, like, mice, lizards, if they have gushing blood, their meat and skin will not be considered Pak if they are slaughtered or hunted down.
2599. If a dead young is born from the body of a living animal, or is brought out of it, it is haraam to eat its meat.
Method of Slaughtering Animals
2600. * The method of slaughtering an animal is that the four main arteries of its neck should be completely cut (jugular artery, foodpipe, jugular vein and windpipe). It is not sufficient to split open these arteries or to cut off the neck. And the cutting of these four main arteries becomes practical when the cutting takes place from below the knot of the throat.
2601. If a person cuts some of the four arteries and waits till the animal dies and then cuts the remaining arteries, it will be of no use. If the four arteries are cut before the animal dies, but the cutting was not continuous as is usually done, the animal is Pak and halal to eat. However, the recommended precaution is that they should be cut in continuous succession.
2602. * If a wolf tears off the throat of a sheep in such a way that nothing remains of the four arteries which could be cut for slaughter, the sheep becomes haraam. Similarly, it will be haraam if nothing remains of its gullet. In fact, if its neck is torn open by the wolf leaving arteries connected with the head or the body, as a precaution, it will be haraam. But if the sheep is bitten on other part of the body, and it remains alive, it will be Pak and halal if slaughtered according to the rules which will be described later.
Conditions of Slaughtering Animals
2603. * There are certain conditions for the slaughtering of an animal. They are as follows:-
(i) A person, a man or a woman, who slaughters an animal must be a Muslim. An animal can also be slaughtered by a Muslim child who is mature enough to distinguish between good and bad, but not by non-Muslims other than Ahle Kitab, or a person belonging to those sects who are classified as Kafir, like, Nawasib - the enemies of Ahlul Bait (A.S.). In fact, even if Ahle Kitab non-Muslim slaughters an animal, as per precaution, it will not be halal, even if he utters 'Bismillah'.
(ii) The animal should be slaughtered with a weapon made of iron. However, if an implement made of iron is not available, it should be slaughtered with a sharp object like glass or stone, so that the four veins are severed, even if the slaughtering may not be necessary, like when the animal is on the verge of death.
(iii) When an animal is slaughtered, it should be facing Qibla. If the animal is sitting or standing, then facing Qibla would be like a man standing towards Qibla while praying. And if it is lying on its right or left side, then its neck and stomach should be facing Qibla. It is not necessary that its legs, hands and face be towards Qibla. If a person who knows the rule, purposely ignores placing the animal towards Qibla, the animal would become haraam; but if he forgets or does not know the rule, or makes a mistake in ascertaining the Qibla, or does not know the direction of Qibla, or is unable to turn the animal towards Qibla, there is no objection. As a recommended precaution, the person slaughtering should also face Qibla.
(iv) When a person wants to slaughter an animal, just as he makes the Niyyat to slaughter, he should utter the name of Allah, and it suffices if he says 'Bismillah' only, or if he utters 'Allah'. But if he utters the name of Allah without the intention of slaughtering the animal, the slaughtered animal does not become Pak and it is also haraam to eat its meat. And if he did not utter the name of Allah forgetfully, there is no objection.
(v) The animal should show some movement after being slaughtered; at least it should move its eyes or tail or strike its foot on the ground.This law applies only when it is doubtful whether or not the animal was alive at the time of being slaughtered, otherwise it is not essential.
(vi) It is necessary that the blood should flow in normal quantity from the slaughtered animal. If someone blocks the vein, not allowing blood to flow out, or if the bleeding is less than normal, that animal will not be halal. But if the blood which flows is less because the animal bled profusely before the slaughter, there is no objection.
(vii) The animal should be slaughtered from its proper place of slaughtering; on the basis of recommended precaution, the neck should be cut from its front, and the knife should be used from the back of the neck.
2604. * As a precaution, it is not permissible to sever the head of the animal from its body before it has died, though this would not make the animal haraam. But if the head gets severed because of sharpness of the knife, or not being attentive, there is no objection. Similarly, it is not permissible to slit open the neck and cut the spinal cord before the animal has died.
Source al-islam