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Fatwa CenterHerding goats in return for portion of their offspring
Question
Assalaamu alaykum, dear Shaykh. I would like to know if the following joint business transaction is permissible or not: I have three goats, and my neighbor said that he wanted to take care of them because he needs more income to feed his family. He promised that if one of them gives birth to two goat children (an even number), then one would be mine and he would get the other one. If one of the goats gives birth to five goat children (an odd number), then he would get three and I get two (his portion is larger than mine upon a prior agreement at the beginning). May Allaah reward you well.
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad 
is His slave and Messenger.
It appears from your question that the agreement between you and your neighbor is that he takes care of the goats in return for a portion from its offspring; that he gets half in case they are twins, and he gets three-fifths if the number is odd; if this is the case, then the answer is that most of scholars are of the view that an agreement on herding cattle in return for a portion from its offspring and the like [such as milk and so on] is not valid because the fee for the shepherd is unknown in this case, as the cattle may give birth or not give birth, and there is deceit in it.{C}
Ibn Qudaamah 
said in Al-Mughni:
“If a shepherd is hired to herd sheep and goats in return for one-third of its milk and offspring, or half of it, or all of it, then this is not permissible. This was stated by (Imaam) Ahmad, and the same thing was said by Abu Ayyoob and Abu Khaythamah. I do not know any scholar who is of a different opinion; this is because the compensation is unknown and nonexistent, and he does not know whether or not the sheep and goats will give birth; in principle, there is none, and it is not valid that this (milk or offspring) be a fee for the shepherd.” [Excerpted]
Nonetheless, there are some scholars who are of the view that this is valid. Al-Mardaawi said:
“If he takes cattle to graze it and feed it with hay, to water it, to milk it, and so on, in return for a portion from its produce, offspring, and fur, then this is not valid according to the most correct view of the School. But according to another view of Ahmad, it is valid. This is the view chosen by Ibn ‘Abdoos and Shaykh Taqiyy ad-Deen . He [the author] favored this view in Al-Faa’iq [by Ibn Qaadhi al-Jabal] and in Ar-Ri'aayah Al-Kubra [by Ibn Hamdaan] and said, ‘Ahmad stated this.’” [End of quote]
According to the view that it is permissible to hire a shepherd in return for a portion of the offspring, then what is mentioned in the question, that the shepherd gets half in case they are twins and three-fifths in case it is an odd number, is not different from agreeing on one third or one fourth; this is ignorance (of the fee) that does not prevent accepting it. The view that this is permissible is a considerable view.
Ibn Taymiyyah said, “It is permissible according to Ahmad in one of his two views that a person gives the cattle to someone who would take care of it in return for a portion of its produce and offspring and that he gives the silkworms and the (mulberry) leaves to someone who takes care of them and feeds them in return for a portion from the silk.”
Shaykh Abdul-‘Azeez As-Salmaan answered a question saying:
“If one hires a shepherd of sheep and goats in return for one third of their milk, wool, and offspring, or half of it, or all of it, it is not permissible, because the fee is unknown, and it is not valid as compensation in sale as one does not know whether or not there will be any… but the view which I think is the preponderant one is that this is permissible in the same manner as if one gives his animal or his slave to be taken care of in return for a portion of their earnings.”
However, in order to be on the safe side, it is better to avoid this as a way of avoiding the difference of opinion, unless a known fee is determined for the shepherd in return for his taking care of the goats.
Allah knows best.
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