First of all, it depends on the breed and the individual layer as to whether they'll continue to lay during short winter days with no supplemental light.. Some hens will lay almost every day no matter what.
My hens will continue to lay through the winter on around thirteen hours of light, so I add three extra hours during the dead of winter. I'm adding just two hours now since the days are getting longer again.
I understand your concern about the chickens being active during the time the light is on, then suddenly being left in darkness. I experimented with timing my coop light to go on in the early evening, but then I had the same problem you're experiencing. Hens ended up having to sleep wherever they happened to be when the light suddenly went out. As far as I know, there's no way to dim a light gradually automatically.
Either do what I did - set the light to go on and off just before the early dawn light. A strong night light might work to let them see well enough to get back to their perch. The trouble is that most aren't strong enough for chickens to see. And one that is strong enough will be putting out light all night long.
If you're concerned about the neighbors being irritated by the light, why not just make a shade for the offending window?
My hens will continue to lay through the winter on around thirteen hours of light, so I add three extra hours during the dead of winter. I'm adding just two hours now since the days are getting longer again.
I understand your concern about the chickens being active during the time the light is on, then suddenly being left in darkness. I experimented with timing my coop light to go on in the early evening, but then I had the same problem you're experiencing. Hens ended up having to sleep wherever they happened to be when the light suddenly went out. As far as I know, there's no way to dim a light gradually automatically.
Either do what I did - set the light to go on and off just before the early dawn light. A strong night light might work to let them see well enough to get back to their perch. The trouble is that most aren't strong enough for chickens to see. And one that is strong enough will be putting out light all night long.
If you're concerned about the neighbors being irritated by the light, why not just make a shade for the offending window?
