Walked into my local archery store the other day and asked if they had any feathers.  The owner told me he didnt have any, but when I looked around the store I noticed a few on an old rack and That is when he told me.."you dont want those they have been there for years and are dried out"..

Does this happen? Do feathers just die after a while?

Only if the turkey gets close enough for a clean shot. :-)

They don't dry out, but can have bugs get into them and chew them up. Experience is a hard teacher.

I have feathers that are from back in the 60's and they are fine.

Sounds like you have him right where you want him - make a low ball offer for all those "dried out old things"  

They may look a little worse for wear, but you can likely fletch em up and steam them and they'll perk up as good as new.

Same here,I never seen them dry out, just ate up,I started using mothballs to stop that an it works but the bad thing with mothballs is mothball smell...

I've never had a problem with bugs chewing feathers when I store them in zip-lock bags.  I've got some that are 25 years old and they come out of the bag looking like new.  In fact I think some of my older feathers are stiffer and higher quality than my newer ones.

I'm with Whip!!! Help that man recover "something" from his investment.
   

Yes, feathers dry out with time, but depending on the typical humidity of the area, they will only dry "so much" and stabilize.
The only real threat to them is mites and those can be dealt with by moth balls, cedar chips (pet bedding) or even freezing.

Look the feathers over good. If they have been chewed on by mites, it will be visible. Never store feathers with evidence of mites with sound feathers to avoid transfer.

I like cedar scented mothballs. They are in all of my feather tubs I don't worry about my cache of gray bars.

If necessary you can re-hydrate feathers by putting them in a plastic bag with a damp(not wet) towel inside. Give them a day and they should be good to go. When working raw feathers into fletching if too dry they don't strip off the quill very well. A little re-hydration and they will strip fine.
 Some of the old timers would steam their feathers with water and cedar oil to rehydrate and bug proof them.

well I want to thank all of you for your input.

Ill have to go get me some old nasty feathers.LOL

The "feathers are dried out" is nothing more than an old wife's tale.

Ya gotta luv "pro-shop" guys...8^)