Are feathers dead or alive?
Feathers are alive while they are developing. They have a blood supply during this time. After the feather’s blood supply dries up, the Keratin sheath around it falls off or is removed by the bird revealing the feather. The feather is considered “dead’ at this point because it possesses neither innervations nor a blood supply. Caution: During the development stage, serious damage can occur and the bird can bleed to death if a feather is broken during the development stage. It is also critical to avoid the blood line in the feathers when clipping a bird’s wings.
