I keep many different breeds, so the times when they begin laying vary greatly. Production breeds always lay early, which can cause problems, while breeds not bred for production lay at a normal time. Six months old is when pullets typically begin laying, with production breeds typically beginning at five to four months old. I have noticed that mixed breeds pullets tend to start laying earlier than purebred pullets.
I am unsure of what this exactly means. "New hens" does not accurately describe pullets that are going into lay, since a pullet only turns into a hen when she reaches one year old, just as a cockerel only turns into a rooster once he reaches one year old. I am going to take a guess on what this question is asking since it is a bit confusing. After one of my pullets lays her first egg, she almost always continues to lay every day after that with no problem, except some streaks of blood on the egg which is normal for first-time layers.
A pullet's comb and wattles reddening are the most sure sign that she is going to lay soon. Because she is coming into lay, she will begin squatting for the males (or you) because she is accepting getting bred. A proper male will only want to mate a pullet when she is almost ready to lay eggs in order to fertilize her eggs. A female who is higher on the pecking order does not squat for males because that would show her weakness, so observing squatting behavior is only for middle-ranking or lower-ranking females.
