The question of heat or no heat all comes down to "comfort zones" - yours, not theirs. If you aren't comfortable without providing a little something to take the edge off the cold for them, then you'll have to figure out a way. It doesn't sound like you are able to use any supplemental heat with the distance from the coop to any power source, so the best thing to do is provide lots of warm, deep bedding, make sure they and their coop are dry, and keep drafts off them directly. Ventilation is crucial, but if their feathers are ruffling then their insulating power of down and feathers is compromised and the heat trapped against their skin is being lost. That becomes a draft, not ventilation. Wind chill factors don't come into play as long as the chickens are inside - wind chill is a measurement of ambient temperature plus the rate at which wind speeds pull heat from the body, (or some such scientifical figured stuff) so if they are well sheltered and protected from wind, all you have to deal with is ambient temperatures. Mine did well with no heat here in northwestern Wyoming near Yellowstone Park, even my little Silkies, but the coop and run they had fit well within what I felt comfortable leaving them in. Mine were so well acclimated that I left their run door open when I went out to do morning chores and they were free to come out or stay in, regardless of the weather.
The question of weather to light for egg production or not all comes down to comfort zones - this time theirs, not yours. A lot of people do provide supplemental light to simulate longer days and shorter nights in order to keep egg production up, and there's absolutely nothing wrong with doing that, especially if you have customers counting on the eggs that your girls are laying.
There is another school of thought, though. All spring, summer, and fall, they are extremely active and laying. Granted the most productive months are summer with a slow increase in spring and a slow decrease in fall but winter it changes drastically. Some goofy chickens molt in late fall or early winter, and it takes a lot out of them to grow and replace those feathers, especially if they are also expending energy keeping warm as their more adequately feathered flockmates do. The days are so short but they are perfectly designed to huddle together for shared body heat and to rest up during those long nighttime hours. This is their time to replenish all that an active summer of foraging, molting, raising a family (in some cases) and producing maximum number of eggs takes out of them. It's really too late in the season to guarantee that providing supplemental light will help much....the generally accepted practice is to begin when the days start getting shorter, increasing the hours the light is on to simulated natural daylight. A sudden addition now might stimulate a couple to lay, but for most chickens it's just time that they are kept awake or awakened early with nothing to do but eat, drink and wander around, losing heat that they could have been conserving had they roosted at a natural time and began their day at a natural time. I've done it both ways - the first year I provided supplemental light but decided that - for me and my birds - those few extra eggs weren't worth the stress to their little bodies so I weaned them back off. Another solution is to replace older hens with pullets each year or so, since pullets tend to lay more regularly in winter whether light is supplemented or not.
All of these points are purely personal choices, made by each owner who is doing what is best for his/her flock. I try to make it a point to remember that you are there, I'm here, and you know your situation, limitations, and personal comfort zones far better than I do. So I have shared what I have learned in order to reassure you that you are not a bad chicken owner if you can't provide supplemental heat or light to your flock, any more than you are a bad chicken if you do! Relax - look forward to spring and things getting "back to normal" so that you can better enjoy these feathered marvels with far less stress!
The question of weather to light for egg production or not all comes down to comfort zones - this time theirs, not yours. A lot of people do provide supplemental light to simulate longer days and shorter nights in order to keep egg production up, and there's absolutely nothing wrong with doing that, especially if you have customers counting on the eggs that your girls are laying.
There is another school of thought, though. All spring, summer, and fall, they are extremely active and laying. Granted the most productive months are summer with a slow increase in spring and a slow decrease in fall but winter it changes drastically. Some goofy chickens molt in late fall or early winter, and it takes a lot out of them to grow and replace those feathers, especially if they are also expending energy keeping warm as their more adequately feathered flockmates do. The days are so short but they are perfectly designed to huddle together for shared body heat and to rest up during those long nighttime hours. This is their time to replenish all that an active summer of foraging, molting, raising a family (in some cases) and producing maximum number of eggs takes out of them. It's really too late in the season to guarantee that providing supplemental light will help much....the generally accepted practice is to begin when the days start getting shorter, increasing the hours the light is on to simulated natural daylight. A sudden addition now might stimulate a couple to lay, but for most chickens it's just time that they are kept awake or awakened early with nothing to do but eat, drink and wander around, losing heat that they could have been conserving had they roosted at a natural time and began their day at a natural time. I've done it both ways - the first year I provided supplemental light but decided that - for me and my birds - those few extra eggs weren't worth the stress to their little bodies so I weaned them back off. Another solution is to replace older hens with pullets each year or so, since pullets tend to lay more regularly in winter whether light is supplemented or not.
All of these points are purely personal choices, made by each owner who is doing what is best for his/her flock. I try to make it a point to remember that you are there, I'm here, and you know your situation, limitations, and personal comfort zones far better than I do. So I have shared what I have learned in order to reassure you that you are not a bad chicken owner if you can't provide supplemental heat or light to your flock, any more than you are a bad chicken if you do! Relax - look forward to spring and things getting "back to normal" so that you can better enjoy these feathered marvels with far less stress!
With lights delaying the fall molt, our birds molt whenever their bodies tell them to, rather than always during fall, so we have hens in molt throughout the year. Right now, I have several wearing homemade chicken sweatshirts.
