[cammi]

do feathers grow back or do you have to wait for the next moult for them to be replaced?

[joyfull]

yes they do grow back 

[cammi]

lol thank you

[Sassy]

You usually have to wait for the moult though.

[Lindeggs]

Apparently feathers that have been broken off will need to wait until the next moult to grow back - the shaft of the old feather has to fall out first.  But feathers that have fallen out (or been pulled out) will grow back of their own accord.

At least that's what I read somewhere. 

[GrannieAnnie]

That sounds about right lindeggs, as 2 of the young hens we bought a month ago had bald heads from being pecked by another hen, but after 2 weeks here, they have all grown back again!

[Sassy]

Apparently feathers that have been broken off will need to wait until the next moult to grow back - the shaft of the old feather has to fall out first.  But feathers that have fallen out (or been pulled out) will grow back of their own accord.

At least that's what I read somewhere. 

That's interesting and explains a lot!

[Beakybird]

Another bit of interesting info is that if most or all of the blade is missing (the blade being the side bits which are made up of barbs) due to damage and there's only the rachis left (the 'stick' in the middle) a bird can have trouble moulting it as it's not heavy enough (info provided by my fab avian vet ).

One of my ex-batts still has little sticks for wings even after 18 months of being with me. If the old feathers haven't moulted by early Autumn she'll be going to the vets to have them removed. She's had two winters with hardly any proper feathers, bless her!

Cammi - none of your questions are 'dumb'!

[Lindeggs]

That's very interesting indeed!  Something to watch out for in a rescued hen that's had a bit of a tough life already and been battered and bruised. 

I wonder if you could help the moult along in some way.  I know moulting is already very uncomfortable for the poor things, but I wonder if you could groom her a bit like a long-haired dog or cat and kind of 'stroke' the feathers out?  Perhaps it might be something you could do regularly to loosen them up?

Disclaimer: I would never suggest plucking the feathers out of a live bird.  I'm sure that would be terribly painful.