fly tying feather help

[archerobx]

I saved almost every feather from my butchered chickens and was going to try to sell some for fly tying.
The problem i am having is, i am not real sure which feathers are which. I also can't seem to find any references online. I did order a book.
Was wondering if any y'all could help.
Thanks
Ryan

 

[philter4]

I don't understand the question, do you need to identify the breed of chicken each feather came from? or are you trying to find out what area the feathers came from on each bird and the names?

If you need to know the breed you should try to remember which chickens you used and then try to match a feather pattern with the breeds you butchered.

If you want to know what the fly fishermen want, off of a chicken they like the neck hackles, which are the longer feathers from the head down to the body. Birds like phoenix and others that are bred for feathers have very long neck hackles, meat and egg birds only the roosters have hackles that could be used. Also in the same breeds of birds the feathers that cover the back above the tail are very sellable. These are the back hackles and in a good bird can touch the ground. Finally the wing feathers are used but normally they buy the whole wing, not just the feathers.

I am not sure where you are going to sell your feathers but if you want to sell them to a shop or sell them yourself locally the flock has to be NPIP and approved by the FDA in some states. I had trouble last year selling to shops because California changed it's rules and I had to get health certificates for my birds before I could sell the feathers through any retail outlet. Many shops don't care or follow the rules but still it is important to find out what the rules are for selling poultry or parts in your area. Even though these were not going to be used for human consumption, some states consider any part of the bird under the same rules as food.