What are the categories of the livestock permissible for Udhiyah?
Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah.
The Udhiyah (sacrificial offering) is not valid except from Al-An’am (livestock), which are: camels, cattle, and sheep/goats. Allah the Almighty says {what means}: "And for every nation We have appointed a rite [of sacrifice] that they may mention the name of Allah over what He has provided for them of beast-livestock." [Al-Hajj/34]
The best of them are camels, then cattle, then sheep/goats. A sacrifice of a camel or a cow avails for seven people. Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "We sacrificed with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) in the year of Al-Hudaybiyah a camel for seven and a cow for seven." [Narrated by Muslim] And Allah the Almighty knows best.
What is the amount of food to be given to a needy person for fidyah and kaffarah?
The amount of food to be given to a needy person is 600 grams of wheat or rice.
According to the Hanafi school, it is permissible to give the monetary equivalent instead, and this is the ruling issued by the General Iftaa` Department.
When does the time for Udhiyah begin?
Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
The time for Udhiyah (sacrificial offering) begins once the sun has risen on the day of Eid al-Adha—which is the tenth of Dhul-Hijjah—and a period of time has passed equivalent to two brief prayer units (Raka'at) and two brief sermons (Khutbah). It then continues until the sunset of the last of the days of Tashreeq, which are the eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth of Dhul-Hijjah.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "All the mountain passes of Mina are places of sacrifice, and in all the days of Tashreeq there is slaughtering." [Narrated by Al-Bayhaqi and Ibn Hibban].
The best time to slaughter is after finishing the Eid prayer, due to the saying of the Prophet (peace be upon him):
"Indeed, the first thing we begin with on this day of ours is to pray, then we return and slaughter. Whoever does that has attained our Sunnah, and whoever slaughters before [the prayer], it is only meat he has presented to his family; it is not part of the ritual sacrifice (Nusuk) in any way." [ٌReported by Bukhari & Muslim].
It is valid to sacrifice at any time, whether by night or by day; however, it is disliked (Makruh) at night. And Allah the Almighty knows best.
Who should pay the Zakah (obligatory charity) from the orphan`s money?
His/her guardian, and if the latter fails to do so, then the orphan himself/herself is obliged to pay the Zakah once he/she reaches puberty, and is capable of handling his/her own affairs. And Allah Knows Best.
