how long was the dinosars around before they started to have feathers?

according to the supporters and/or perpetrators of the feathered dinosaur hoax, feathers or "protofeathers" (they don't always make the distinction between the two) have been found in ornithischian dinosaurs and in a carnosaur. That means feathers or protofeathers first evolved in the common ancestor of the ornithischian (bird-hipped) and the saurischian (lizard-hipped) dinosaurs. Since both groups are represented in the fossil record during the early days of dinosaur evolution, it means practically all dinosaurs either had feathers or protofeathers. To prove that these structures are in fact protofeathers, these people will show you a cladogram that says birds are dinosaurs. Of course, the cladogram does not tell us that dinosaurs are birds. Therefore it is really not proof. The same people who claim that dinosaurs had feathers or protofeathers have so far refused to publish even a close-up photograph of their "protofeathers", which they often simply refer to as feathers.

Of course, not everyone in this world believe that dinosaurs had feathers. Firstly, the creationists certainly do not, because they believe that birds and dinosaurs were created separately by god. Besides the creationists, there are scientists who also question the claim that the fibers found around the body of dinosaurs such as Sinosauropteryx were either feathers or protofeathers. In the late 1990's, a group of scientists (dubbed the "dream team") which included Larry Martin of Kansas University and John Ostrom of Yale University, went to China to examine Sinosauropteryx in person, to see if the claim that it was a feathered dinosaur was true or not. When these scientists returned, not one of them would state publicly that what they saw was feathers. However, one of the scientists, Alan Brush, did claim that they were "protofeathers." Those people who believe that birds evolved from dinosurs bought that claim hook, line and sinker. Ever since then, anything similar to what has been found on Sinosauropteryx has been called "protofeathers" or even feathers by many people (both scientists and their journalist friends), even though there have been several scientific papers published that claimed that these fibers were most likely collagen fibers, which are found in the skin of all vertebrates, ranging from sharks, to whales to human beings.

After the discovery of Sinosauropteryx, there were a few more fossils that everyone do agree have feathers. However, they disagree on whether these fossils are birds or dinosaurs. For example, virtually everyone agree that Protarchaeopteryx and Caudipteryx had feathers, but some people claim that they are feathered dinosaurs, while others claim that they are flightless birds. It is a similar story for other fossils, such as Microraptor, Sinornithosaurus, Anchiornis and the newly discovered Aurornis. All of them have feathers, but some people claim that they are theropod dinosaurs, while others claim that they are birds. Interestingly, Microraptor, Anchiornis, and Sinornithosaurus have been classified as dinosaurs by some people even though they have 4 wings and flight feathers sticking out of their hindlimbs. The same people also agree that Confuciusornis, Yarnornis and Sapeornis are birds with feathers. Lo and behold, somebody then discovered that Confuciusornis, Yarnornis and Sapeornis also have 4 wings and hindlimb feathers. How is that possible? How can there be 4 winged, feathered dinosaurs and 4 winged, feathered birds all living around the same time in China.

That is where things stand now. Some people claim that feathered dinosaurs exist, while others believe that feathered dinosaurs is a mirage. Some people think that there are 4 winged dinosaurs and 4 winged birds, while others believe that all of these 4 winged fossils were birds, not dinosaurs, and that the dinosaurs that had "protofeathers" actually had collagen fibers. It is a free world, you can believe what you want, even creationism. For those who are rational and capable of evaluating the evidence objectively, the most logical conclusion is that dinosaurs did not have feathers, and that the so-called feathered dinosaurs are either dinosaurs with collagen fibers or birds with feathers.

BTW, there is only one reptile that has been found with feathers, the Triassic Longisquama insignis, from Central Asia. Longisuama is not a dinosaur, but it is an archosaur. Not surprisingly there is also dispute as to whether Longisquama has feathers or not. Those who champion the feathered dinosaur hoax vehemently deny that Longisquama has feathers, while those who think that feather dinosaurs is a mirage believe that Longisquama has feathers.

We only have a fossil record for about 1-5% of all the animals that have been on this earth. There are probably a LOT we don't know about. We assume we know when feathers evolved but every time we think we know, we find out they are older than what we thought. Right now, we assume this came somewhat before dinosaurs died out but I personally don't think that is the case.

I think feathers probably existed MUCH further back than we think. Even if we found the "oldest" it would have taken a few million years to evolve to that point. So who is to say they don't go back even further? Evolution does crazy things and animals mutate all the time even today. If the mutation is favorable and works with the environment, the animal lives and reproduces.

So how long, you ask? WE DON'T KNOW! Even when we think we know, we probably can tack a few million years onto whatever answer we find. The world is older than we think and so is our universe. We were not there so all we have to go on are the fragments left behind and those can never tell the whole story. A fossil is a very rare occurrence. Most dead animals decompose and are never discovered.

Each time we find a fossil, we know a little bit more of the story. People who have helped excavate, clean and study the fossils know it is NO hoax! These things existed on our planet long before us. If they were never here, we would not be either. They died, we took over and this is what we know. What about all the things we don't know yet? By knowing more about our planet, we learn more about ourselves and how we came to be. If we look at nature with an open mind, we might be surprised at the answers. I hope this answer helps. Good luck!

They didn't BEGIN to have feathers- some of them had feathers and some of them didn't- they were created that way by our Lord, savior, and creator Jesus Christ. i am not saying that you are stupid, as all humans are created equal, but you've been taught incorrect history and science that has no real proof and plenty against it. God bless. :)

During the mid-late Jurassic Period, small predating dinosaurs began to grow feather like fibers in them, so quite a few million years!