This is a woman asking, and she says: Is it permissible for me to perform the 'aqiqah (sacrifice for a newborn) for my four sons with one calf instead of sheep?

Question:
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, this is a woman asking, and she says: Is it permissible for me to perform the 'aqiqah for my four sons with one calf instead of performing the 'aqiqah for each of them with sheep?

Answer:
First, the 'aqiqah is the obligation of the father, not the mother; it is the right of the child upon his father. Second, if the calf is used, its age must be the same as that of the udhiyah (the 'Id sacrifice); a cow must be two years old. If it is two years old, that is acceptable. Also, there must be no sharing in it; it must be for one person only. A cow or a camel, if slaughtered for the 'aqiqah, is for one person. It is not like the udhiyah, where a cow is for seven people and a camel is for seven people. If you slaughter it for one person, it is all for him. There must be no sharing in it. Yes.