Shaddad b. Aus reported God’s messenger as saying, “God who is blessed and exalted has decreed that everything should be done in a good way, so when you kill use a good method, and when you cut an animal’s throat you should use a good method, for each of you should sharpen his knife and give the animal as little pain as possible.”
Ka‘b b. Malik told that he had sheep which were pastured at Sal‘, and when a slavegirl of his saw one of their sheep which was dying she broke a stone and cut its throat with it. He questioned the Prophet and he ordered him to eat it.
Ibn ‘Umar told that he heard God’s messenger prohibit keeping an animal or anything else* waiting to be killed.
*The word translated animal is bahima, which indicates a quadruped. “Anything else” means other creatures which are killed for food. The prohibition is said to refer either to keeping such animals without food and drink, or to imprisoning them and using them as targets.
