INTRODUCTION

      Did you ever wonder why chickens need feathers? Or why chickens have feathers? Or even how they're made? 

     Well if you have, you came to the right chicken website! Feathers are a feature on a bird and chicken that are really unique. And they are pretty as well. But overall, feathers are important in so many other ways. 

    Now… Look Down Below Please!

WHY CHICKENS NEED FEATHERS 

     One reason chickens need feathers is because chickens have poor flight, meaning they can't fly or fly well. So feathers solve the problem. The feathers help the chicken and other birds be able to jump high or even fly. 

     A chicken's down feathers are the closest layer to the body, providing insulation. Insulation means to provide a warm layer to keep the heat in and protect the chicken from the cold and snow.

MAIN FEATHER TYPES 

     Chickens have four main feather types that cover a chicken's body. They are down feathers, counter feathers, semiplumes, and filoplumes. Each feather is structured differently and serves their own particular purpose. Chicken feathers cover most of a chicken's body, but some breeds of chickens have feathers on their legs. Sometimes they even have feathers on their toes!

OUTERMOST FEATHERS 

     A chicken's outermost feathers are on their tail, wings, and body. Their feathers keep them covered. If chickens did not have feathers they would probably have skin like people, maybe even different colors.

HACKLE FEATHERS

      A hackle feather is a type of counter feather. These types of feathers cover the chicken's neck and saddle. Chicken's neck feathers are called the hackles. 

     Hackle feathers can stand up when a chicken gets mad. On a chicken's neck the hackle feathers are a different color. On male chickens the feathers could be all different colors!

OTHER FEATHERS

     Secondaries are the chicken's inner flight feathers. Their inner flight feathers help chickens and other birds flap their wings and jump high. The belly and remaining body areas of a chicken are covered with small, fluffy tiny feathers. In some cases the underside of a chicken is lighter in color.

FEATHER COLORS 

     Did you know that the color of feathers comes from pigments?  The keratin that forms the feathers in layers can create many different natural colors of feathers, such as blacks, browns, reds, blues, grays, and yellows.

HOW FEATHERS ARE MADE

    Chicken feathers are made just from protein. This is just like their eggs which are made of protein, too! 

   So there is no need to worry when the molting season comes by and a chicken stops laying eggs. It's because the chicken is using their energy to make feathers instead of to lay eggs. When the molting is over, the eggs will return.

     Did you know feathers are made of keratin? Keratin is the same material that your fingernails and hair are made from. Each feather has a hard central stem, and that area is called a shaft.

MOLTING 

     After chickens are one year old, they molt. Chickens molt once per year. During late summer or early fall, the feathers on a chicken's body will molt. This means their feathers will fall out and then regrow. 

     Molting usually starts from the head down. If molting starts in a different place, it may be a sign that the ckicken is stressed or sick.

   Did you know that the molting process is actually painful for the chicken? The painful part is when the feathers start to regrow. The new feathers are called pin feathers. New pin feathers can be itchy for a chicken, but it's usually best just to let Mother Nature handle things on her own.

SILKIES

     Did you know silkies do not have typical feathers? Unlike other chickens, silkies don't have barbicels. Barbicels are the tiny hooks on most feathers that hold the hairs together. 

     This gives Silkies their poofy look. Because the hairs from a silkie's feathers fly free, silkies may look fluffy and their feathers may have the appearance of fur.