First: it must be from the livestock animals. If a person were to offer a horse as an aqiqah, it would not be valid, because the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “Whoever performs an action that is not in accordance with this matter of ours will have it rejected.” (1) And he said: “For a boy, two sheep; and for a girl, one sheep.” (2)

Second: it must have reached the prescribed age: six months for sheep, one year for goats, two years for cattle, and five years for camels.

Third: it must be free of defects that prevent validity, such as obvious one-eyedness, obvious illness, obvious lameness, and the like.

It differs from the sacrificial animal in a number of matters, including:

First: cooking it is preferable to distributing it raw, because this is easier for those to whom it is given as food.

Second: as mentioned previously, its bones are not to be broken; this is unique to the aqiqah.

Third: what the author mentioned—that no share in one animal is valid for it—when he said:

“Except that no sharing in one animal is valid for it.” That is, sharing in an animal is not valid for the aqiqah: a camel does not suffice for two people, nor does a cow suffice for two people; and, all the more so, it does not suffice for three or four. The reason for this is:

First: no sharing in it has been reported, and acts of worship are based on textual prescription.

Second: it is a ransom, and a ransom cannot be divided. It is a ransom for a person; therefore, since it is a ransom for a person, it must itself be a complete animal.