אין מראין סכין לחכם בי"ט לראות אם הוא ראוי לשחוט בו שמא תהיה פגומה ויאמר לו אסור לשחוט בה מפני פגימת' וילך ויחדדנה במשחז' וחכם שראה סכין לעצמו יכול להשאילו לאחרים: הגה ועכשיו בזמן הזה שכל שוחט רואה סכין בעצמו כל הרוצה לשחוט בי"ט יבדוק סכינו מעי"ט ולא ביום טוב שמא ישחיזנו (ד"ע ומהרי"ל והגהות שחיטה) מיהו אם לא בדקו מעי"ט והוא שעת הדחק יכול לבדקו ביום טוב: (שחיטות ישנים):

Laws of slaughter on Yom Tov. Contains 20 sections One may not show a knife to a scholar on Yom Tov to determine whether it is fit for slaughter, lest it be found notched and he tell him it is forbidden to slaughter with it, and he will go and sharpen it on a whetstone. A scholar who examined a knife for himself may lend it to others. Rema: Nowadays since every slaughterer examines his own knife, anyone wishing to slaughter on Yom Tov should examine his knife before Yom Tov and not on Yom Tov lest he sharpen it. However if he did not examine it before Yom Tov and it is a pressing situation, he may examine it on Yom Tov.

One may bring a knife and an animal to a butcher to slaughter, even a small kid that must be carried on one's shoulder, even though it was possible to bring it yesterday. (And similarly the butcher may bring the knife to the animal.)

Animals that go out and graze beyond the boundary and come and sleep within the boundary are considered prepared, and one may take them and slaughter them on Yom Tov. But animals that graze and sleep beyond the boundary — if they came on Yom Tov, one may not slaughter them on Yom Tov since they are set-aside and the townspeople had no intention regarding them. This applies to animals belonging to Jews, but those belonging to non-Jews have no set-aside concern since non-Jews require no preparation — unless they were brought for the sake of a Jew, in which case it is forbidden. Therefore if a non-Jew brought animals to the slaughterhouse and it is known they slept beyond the boundary, they are forbidden; if there is doubt, they are permitted even if they were brought for a Jew, since set-aside is treated leniently in cases of doubt. If they were brought for the non-Jew or even without specification in a city with a non-Jewish majority, it is permitted since whoever brings for the majority brings for all.

Animals known to sleep beyond the boundary that are found in the city on the second day — I say perhaps they were brought in the evening before, and those that slept outside the walls are permitted. All the more so animals slaughtered in the morning, where there is a presumption they were brought within the boundary the previous evening.

A calf born on Yom Tov may be slaughtered if its mother is designated for eating and it is known with certainty that its months of gestation were completed. Rema: It is also required that it have stood on the ground, since we are concerned lest an internal organ defect be found and it turn out the slaughter on Yom Tov was unnecessary — so it appears to me from the words of the Rosh and the Tur. If Shabbat and Yom Tov are adjacent, one born on one may be slaughtered on the other.

A dangerously ill animal that one fears may die — if one has already eaten and does not need it — it is forbidden to slaughter it unless there is enough time in the day to eat an olive's worth of roasted meat while it is still day (even if there is not enough time to cut it up and examine it first). When there is enough time and one slaughtered it, one may not remove its hide unless one left one limb attached and brings it along. Rema: Some say it should not be skinned at all unless it was slaughtered for Yom Tov purposes, and this is the proper ruling.

If one slaughtered an animal in the field, he may not bring it on a pole or carrying frame as one does on a weekday, but must bring it by hand limb by limb.

A bird that was trampled underfoot where there is concern that its organs were crushed — and therefore requires waiting a full day and examination after slaughter — may be slaughtered on Yom Tov, and we are not concerned that it may be found to be a trefah, even though a defect has arisen in it.

A firstborn animal in our time that cannot be slaughtered without a blemish — a scholar may not examine it on Yom Tov to determine whether it has a blemish. Even if he transgressed and examined it and found a blemish, he may not slaughter it. But if it was born with its blemish and he transgressed and examined it, it may be slaughtered on his ruling. If he examined the blemish before Yom Tov and saw it was a blemish warranting slaughter, he may investigate on Yom Tov whether the blemish arose on its own and thereby permit it. Rema: If a firstborn fell into a pit, it is forbidden to lift it out since it cannot be slaughtered — rather one provides for it in its place.

If a mother animal and her offspring both fell into a pit, one lifts out the first intending to slaughter it but does not slaughter it, then cunningly lifts out the second — whichever one he wishes he may slaughter.

An animal half owned by a non-Jew and half by a Jew may be slaughtered on Yom Tov, and even if they have two such animals both may be slaughtered.

One who slaughters an animal on Yom Tov may not pull out the wool to make room for the knife, but moves it aside (by hand) and draws it this way and that — and if it comes out, it comes out.

One who slaughters a bird may not pluck the feathers to make room for the knife.

A person may not slaughter a wild animal or bird on Yom Tov unless he has earth prepared before Yom Tov. If he transgressed and slaughtered, if he has a pointed implement (meaning a type of iron spike with which one digs the ground) stuck in loose earth from before Yom Tov, he may cover the blood with it. (Even if several pokings were required, it is permitted.)

Ashes from a stove that was heated before Yom Tov may be used for covering. But if it was heated on Yom Tov, it is forbidden unless the ashes are hot enough to roast an egg. If one slaughtered, one may cover with them even if they are not hot enough to roast an egg. Nevertheless it is preferable to cover with a pointed implement in loose earth if available.

If one brought a large quantity of earth into his house for his garden and it is piled in one place, one may cover with it — since as long as it is piled up he has it in mind for whatever he needs. But if he brought in only a basketful for his garden, it is voided since it is so little.

One may bring a full basket of earth into his house without specification and use it for all his needs (see above Siman 308, section 38) — and we do not say it is voided relative to the ground of the house — provided he designated a corner for it, since as long as he did not spread it out it is evident he needs it for his purposes. And if it is loose earth, one may cover with it.

A koy (meaning a creature born from a goat and a deer) — one may not slaughter it on Yom Tov, and if one did slaughter it, one may not cover its blood even with prepared earth, since an observer will say it is certainly a wild animal — otherwise why would they trouble to cover its blood on Yom Tov — and he will come to permit its forbidden fat. If its mark is recognizable, one may cover it. Rema: This applies specifically when it was slaughtered in a corner and similar situations. But if it was slaughtered in the middle of the courtyard, even the blood of a regular animal may be covered if one has prepared earth, since it is like an offensive object that must be covered so that one's clothes not be soiled in the courtyard.

If one slaughtered an animal and a wild animal and their blood became mixed, and one has prepared earth or stove ashes — if one can cover it with a single poking without needing to do more on account of the animal's blood, one may cover it; if not, one may not.

If one slaughtered a bird before Yom Tov and did not cover its blood, one may not cover it on Yom Tov.