I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say: Two resembling sheep are to be sacrificed for a boy and one for a girl. AbuDawud said: I heard Ahmad (ibn Hanbal) say: The Arabic word mukafi'atani means equal (in age) or resembling each other.  

سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ يَقُولُ عَنِ الْغُلاَمِ شَاتَانِ مُكَافِئَتَانِ وَعَنِ الْجَارِيَةِ شَاةٌ  

I heard the Prophet (nay peace be upon him) say: Let the birds stay in their roosts. She said: I also heard him say: Two sheep are to be sacrificed for a boy and one for a girl, but it does you no harm whether they are male or female.  

سَمِعْتُ النَّبِيَّ ﷺ يَقُولُ أَقِرُّوا الطَّيْرَ عَلَى مَكِنَاتِهَا قَالَتْ وَسَمِعْتُهُ يَقُولُ عَنِ الْغُلاَمِ شَاتَانِ وَعَنِ الْجَارِيَةِ شَاةٌ لاَ يَضُرُّكُمْ أَذُكْرَانًا كُنَّ أَمْ إِنَاثًا  

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: Two sheep which resemble each other are to be sacrificed for a boy and one for a girl. Abu Dawud said: This is a sound tradition, and the tradition narrated by Sufyan is misunderstanding.  

قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ عَنِ الْغُلاَمِ شَاتَانِ مِثْلاَنِ وَعَنِ الْجَارِيَةِ شَاةٌ  

The Prophet ﷺ said: A boy is in pledge for his Aqiqah. Sacrifice is made for him on the seventh day, his head is shaved and is smeared with blood. When Qatadah was asked about smearing with blood, how that should be done, he said: When you cut the head (i.e. throat) of the animal (meant for Aqiqah), you may take a few hair of it, place them on its veins, and then place them in the middle of the head of the infant, so that the blood flows on the hair (of the infant) like a threat. Then its head may be washed and shaved off. Abu Dawud said: In narrating the word "is smeared with blood" (yudamma) there is a misunderstanding on the part of Hammam. Abu Dawud said: Hammam has been opposed in narrating the words "is smeared with blood". This is misunderstanding of Hammam. They narrated he word "he is given a name (yusamma) and Hammam narrated it "is smeared with blood" (yudamma). Abu Dawud said: This tradition is not followed.  

عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ قَالَ كُلُّ غُلاَمٍ رَهِينَةٌ بِعَقِيقَتِهِ تُذْبَحُ عَنْهُ يَوْمَ السَّابِعِ وَيُحْلَقُ رَأْسُهُ وَيُدَمَّى فَكَانَ قَتَادَةُ إِذَا سُئِلَ عَنِ الدَّمِ كَيْفَ يُصْنَعُ بِهِ قَالَ إِذَا ذَبَحْتَ الْعَقِيقَةَ أَخَذْتَ مِنْهَا صُوفَةً وَاسْتَقْبَلْتَ بِهِ أَوْدَاجَهَا ثُمَّ تُوضَعُ عَلَى يَافُوخِ الصَّبِيِّ حَتَّى يَسِيلَ عَلَى رَأْسِهِ مِثْلُ الْخَيْطِ ثُمَّ يُغْسَلُ رَأْسُهُ بَعْدُ وَيُحْلَقُ  

The Prophet ﷺ said: A boy is in pledge for his Aqiqah, Sacrifice is made for him on the seventh day, his head is shaved and he is given name. Abu Dawud said: The word wa yusamma is sounder as narrated by Salam b. Abi Muti' from Qatadah, and narrated by Iyas b. Daghfal and Ash'ath from al-Hassan who narrated wa yusamma (and he is given a name).  

أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ قَالَ كُلُّ غُلاَمٍ رَهِينَةٌ بِعَقِيقَتِهِ تُذْبَحُ عَنْهُ يَوْمَ سَابِعِهِ وَيُحْلَقُ وَيُسَمَّى  

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ as saying: Along with a boy there is an 'Aqiqah, so shed blood on his behalf, and remove injury from him.  

قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ مَعَ الْغُلاَمِ عَقِيقَتُهُ فَأَهْرِيقُوا عَنْهُ دَمًا وَأَمِيطُوا عَنْهُ الأَذَى  

To remove the injury is the shaving of the head.  

أَنَّهُ كَانَ يَقُولُ إِمَاطَةُ الأَذَى حَلْقُ الرَّأْسِ  

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ sacrificed a ram for both al-Hasan and al-Husayn each (Allah be pleased with them).  

أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ عَقَّ عَنِ الْحَسَنِ وَالْحُسَيْنِ كَبْشًا كَبْشًا  

On his father's authority, said that his grandfather that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was asked about the aqiqah. He replied: Allah does not like the breaking of ties (uquq), as though he disliked the name. And he said: If anyone has a child born to him and wishes to offer a sacrifice on its behalf, he may offer two resembling sheep for a boy and one for a girl. And he was asked about fara'. He replied: Fara' is right. If you leave it (i.e. let it grow till it becomes a healthy camel of one year or two years, then you give it to a widow or give it in the path of Allah for using it as a riding beast, it is better than slaughtering it at the age when its meat is stuck to its hair, and you turn over your milking vessel and annoy your she-camel.  

أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ ﷺ ح وَحَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ سُلَيْمَانَ الأَنْبَارِيُّ حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الْمَلِكِ يَعْنِي ابْنَ عَمْرٍو عَنْ دَاوُدَ عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ شُعَيْبٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ أُرَاهُ عَنْ جَدِّهِ قَالَ سُئِلَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ عَنِ الْعَقِيقَةِ فَقَالَ لاَ يُحِبُّ اللَّهُ الْعُقُوقَ كَأَنَّهُ كَرِهَ الاِسْمَ وَقَالَ مَنْ وُلِدَ لَهُ وَلَدٌ فَأَحَبَّ أَنْ يَنْسُكَ عَنْهُ فَلْيَنْسُكْ عَنِ الْغُلاَمِ شَاتَانِ مُكَافِئَتَانِ وَعَنِ الْجَارِيَةِ شَاةٌ وَسُئِلَ عَنِ الْفَرَعِ قَالَ وَالْفَرَعُ حَقٌّ وَأَنْ تَتْرُكُوهُ حَتَّى يَكُونَ بَكْرًا شُغْزُبًّا ابْنَ مَخَاضٍ أَوِ ابْنَ لَبُونٍ فَتُعْطِيَهُ أَرْمَلَةً أَوْ تَحْمِلَ عَلَيْهِ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ خَيْرٌ مِنْ أَنْ تَذْبَحَهُ فَيَلْزَقَ لَحْمُهُ بِوَبَرِهِ وَتُكْفِئَ إِنَاءَكَ وَتُوَلِّهَ نَاقَتَكَ  

When a boy was born to one of us in the pre-Islamic period, we sacrificed a sheep and smeared his head with its blood; but when Allah brought Islam, we sacrificed a sheep, shaved his head and smeared his head with saffron.  

سَمِعْتُ أَبِي بُرَيْدَةَ يَقُولُ كُنَّا فِي الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ إِذَا وُلِدَ لأَحَدِنَا غُلاَمٌ ذَبَحَ شَاةً وَلَطَخَ رَأْسَهُ بِدَمِهَا فَلَمَّا جَاءَ اللَّهُ بِالإِسْلاَمِ كُنَّا نَذْبَحُ شَاةً وَنَحْلِقُ رَأْسَهُ وَنَلْطَخُهُ بِزَعْفَرَانٍ