The wonderful properties of chicken feathers

[K0k0shka]

I wanted to save some pretty cockerel feathers when I was butchering so I just tossed handfulls of wet feathers onto the metal roof of the brooder (I was working right next to it), and let the sun dry them.

Wow, I can't imagine setting anything like that down and coming back to find it in the same place! It's always some kind of windy over here.

 

[3KillerBs]

Wow, I can't imagine setting anything like that down and coming back to find it in the same place! It's always some kind of windy over here.

None of them went too far.

We're in a kind of sheltered nook in the hill. Even the hurricane didn't affect us very badly.

 

[SourRoses]

I wanted to pluck a really beautiful chicken that passed but my mom thought I was crazy and when I couldn't get the first feather out she told me it was too hard to do without scalding. Clearly my technique was not up to par, lol

 

[Shabby Chic-Hens]

I always try to save the feathers that fall off of the hens ( I have never buchered a chicken 'cause they're my pets (if I need a rooster to be taken care of, I will have a family member do the deed) ). I think the feathers are beautiful. I like to make art with them.

 

[K0k0shka]

I wanted to pluck a really beautiful chicken that passed but my mom thought I was crazy and when I couldn't get the first feather out she told me it was too hard to do without scalding. Clearly my technique was not up to par, lol

Just pull really hard. Even if you take some skin with it... The chicken won't care

 

[K0k0shka]

I always try to save the feathers that fall off of the hens ( I have never buchered a chicken 'cause they're my pets (if I need a rooster to be taken care of, I will have a family member do the deed) ). I think the feathers are beautiful. I like to make art with them.

I take a handful of feathers from each special bird I have to part with (whether because it passed away on its own, or because I had to cull it), and make a keepsake bouquet from them. Some of them are really beautiful indeed.

 

[Shabby Chic-Hens]

I take a handful of feathers from each special bird I have to part with (whether because it passed away on its own, or because I had to cull it), and make a keepsake bouquet from them. Some of them are really beautiful indeed.

I would love to do the same with some of the really nice wing-feathers.

 

[raingarden]

The tail and wing feathers are the largest but the most difficult to remove. Sometimes it's hard to pluck them without making a crimp in the shaft. Maybe latex gloves would help but I've never tried.

 

[canne50]

Not sure where to put this, just wanted to share a very cool (and impressive) observation, on how great chicken feathers are at doing their job.

A couple of days ago I had to urgently process a cockerel (doing a favor for somebody whose neighbors had complained, and the bird had to go). She dropped him off in the morning, but I had other plans for the day and wasn't going to be able to do the whole processing that morning. I didn't want him to stay caged all day either. So I did an "interrupted processing", where I gutted him first, refrigerated him, and went back to scald and pluck him later that evening. Before I put him in the fridge, I placed a ziploc baggie full of ice in the body cavity, and one under each armpit, to speed up the cooling process since feathers are a good insulator. That was around 9am in the morning. By the time I went back to finish him off, it was around 9 in the evening, so a full 12 hours. The baggie in the body cavity was full of liquid water by that point, which was to be expected. But the ones under his armpits? Full of INTACT ICE CUBES!!!!!! 12 hours at refrigerator temperature, and the ice had not melted! Daaaaaaamn those feathers really work! And the ones under/on the wings aren't exactly the fluffiest either, but they still did their job.

And this is why chickens do just fine in the winter! They have the best coats.

Growing up in SE Arkansas, where Stuttgart, AR is the Rice and Duck capitol of the World feathers have been a constant staple in my life.
John Denver sang about Grandma’s featherbed. I can still recall falling to sleep on my Great Grans featherbed! Always warm in winter, soft, and just a whole unique experience!
Duck hunters arrived every Fall from all over the world. Hundreds of ducks would be dispatched. Then the plucking began for us women. Featherbeds and tick pillows, and cotton quilts usually filled the young lady’s Hope Chest at the foot of her bed.
Sticking to the trunk of the duck body for collection, there was less chance of having a feather poke you while sleeping. We cast tail and wing feathers in the compost pile.
Have fun!

 

[ppruitt]

I agree. A couple winters ago during molt, I saved the best downy feathers and made myself some "feather socks" to try to counter the freezing of the toes on one foot due to poor circulation, which can end up in a condition called chilblains. It causes swelling and blisters that take weeks to heal. The socks worked, even though they had to be tossed after a few weeks due to poor construction.

I have Reynaud's Syndrome and one year had a TERRIBLE case of chillblains on my toes and fingers. I never want to go through that again. I found a company that has the best, warmest socks I have ever worn. I'm not affiliated with them and I receive nothing for posting this. But if you are looking for socks to keep your feet toasty, these are the bomb. (But very expensive! )

https://www.alpacadirect.com/collec...oducts/alpaca-socks-extreme-winter-boot-socks