Ibn al-Qāsim relates from Mālik: “When a mortally ill animal is slaughtered while it is still breathing—even though there is no hope of its survival—its meat is unobjectionable.”

Ibn Wahb records in his recension of the Muwaṭṭaʾ that Mālik was asked about a sheep that had fallen from a height, broken its bones, and was found by its owner while it was still moving. The owner slaughtered it, blood flowed, yet it ceased to move. Mālik said, “In my view, if the owner slaughtered it while its breath was still present and its eyes were still blinking, he may eat it.”

It is recommended for a Muslim to face the qiblah when slaughtering, but whoever slaughters while not facing the qiblah incurs no blame.