How to Hunt Animals in Islam?

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam
Question: How do I hunt and keep the animal halal?
Answer: Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,
I pray that you are in the best of health and faith, insha’Allah.
The following excerpt is taken from Shaykh Faraz Khan’s footnotes on Imam Shurunbulali’s Ascent to Felicity [179-180]:
The following comprises the 15 general conditions for game that is permissible to eat, in order to eat its meat:

The Hunter

(1) That he be among those who can slaughter (i.e. Muslim, Jew or Christian);
(2) That he sends out the hunting animal, or casts out the weapon (accompanied with the basmala);
(3) That someone whose game is impermissible does not participate in his sending;
(4) That he not intentionally omit the basmala;
(5) That he not engage in another unrelated action between the sending and the capturing.

The Hunting Animal

(6) That it be trained;
(7) That it proceed in the direction it was sent out;
(8) That another animal that is not a valid hunting animal not participate with it in the taking (of its prey);
(9) That it kill the game by wounding it, rather than by suffocating or by a severe blow that does not puncture its skin;
(10) That it not eats of its meat.

The Game

(11) That it not be of vermin;
(12) That it not be a sea creature, except for fish;
(13) That it is able to escape predation by its wings or legs, and that it be wild such that ritual slaughtering is not possible;
(14) That it not be empowered by fangs or claws (as such an animal is unlawful to eat; yet it may be hunted for other benefits, such as for its hide or bone);
(15) That it be killed by the hunting animal or weapon before the hunter reaches it, since otherwise he would have to ritually slaughter the animal in order for its meat to be lawful.
Please also see: Saying the Basmala and Eating Hunted Animals from the People of the Book
And Allah alone gives success.
wassalam,
Tabraze Azam
Checked & Approved by Faraz Rabbani