I think it's already time to put a light in my coop for added "daylight" hours! The chickens are heading back into to coop at night around 8:45 p.m., and I noticed this morning that it was still totally dark outside at 6:00 a.m.! It still seems so early in the year to me... is it that time already??? I need 14 hours of light for them to lay, right?
Well, I just let mine do thier thing and if they stop they are resting. I don't supplement with light and in the winter it is dark by about 4:30 and the sun comes up at like 8! They still lay eggs too, just not as many.
I was glad to see this question-- I've been wondering the same thing. We're getting about 12 hrs of light here now, and it's growing shorter by the day. Thanks for the advice, silkiechicken!
I'm glad you voice that and your from Michigan too. I was going to start putting light in the coop this weekend. First I have to go buy an extension cord for outdoors that will reach the coop. I was planning on putting a timer in there that will kick the light on at 5 am. Eventually, I will have to set it for an earlier time if the chickens are to get 14 hours. Mine are only 24 weeks - so only 1/2 are laying. Are you going to start putting a light on then?
I do like silkiechicken, no lights and I still get eggs all winter just not as many. I feel they need the rest too and once it gets dark it is lights out!
I have a light in my coop but it's for my babies. Will that throw my hens off/make them lay more? Of course, I can't figure out where they are laying anyway so it doesn't really matter . Free ranging....
I'm planning on putting a light in this weekend. My chickens are just getting ready to start laying soon (they turn 18 weeks on Friday!) and I can't afford to slow their egg production - I have too many people waiting to buy them! I will have to run an extension cord from the pole barn into the coop. I think I'm going to set a timer to turn the light on at 6:00 a.m. for a few hours, turn off while it's actually daylight, then turn back on in the early evening, then back off around 9:00 p.m. I'm interested to see if I'll need to throw a heat lamp in there as well through the winter. I specifically ordered "hardy" breeds of chicken, and I insulated the coop, so I guess we'll see how they act once it starts getting really cold...
I was wondering if I should supplement light for my chickens. We get plenty of eggs now but I was wondering if I will get any eggs without supplementing light. This is our first year raising chickens. Do any of these breeds lay in winter without supplemental light: EE, barred rock, delaware, welsummer, wyandotte, turken, buff orpington, RIR? Christy, IN
I was wondering the same thing. I think I'll follow SilkieChicken's practice - no artificial light to give my girls a rest. I want to keep them and have their egg production for a long time. Plus, that way I don't have to run electrical wires to the coop I read somewhere that if you do add light, do so in the morning only. From my observation of my own girls getting panicky finding their way back to the roost just before dark, I think it will be devastating to them if you just shut the light at 9PM, without giving them a natural (and gradual) transition from light to dark. My thought only. Cheers!