Isolate your birds for three to four weeks giving them time to adjust to your feeding pattern and for you to fully worm them. Both these species are very docile and will cause no disruption in your mixed collection. Having let your birds choose their own mate they should be breeding condition in 12 to 18 months, however their first attempt at nesting may well be aborted or the eggs may be infertile. I have kept both these delightful birds for many years and my success has varied greatly. To my mind the most critical factor is in the initial selection of a compatible young healthy pair.
Disappointment usually follows when mature unpaired birds are purchased .
With my dry seed mix, I increase the canary content by about a quarter to one bag of finch mix and feed an additional soft feed mix of soaked seed, mashed whole boiled egg and cake. This mixture is fed in the morning and is take in preference to dry seed by all the aviary birds. Limited numbers of termites and mealworms are also fed and these are relished by both Cordons and Orange breast when they have young in the nest. Generally I only feed small quantities of live food then I observe the live food tray and apply my 10 second rule. If finches are eating live food within 10 seconds of my leaving the aviary, then I increase the frequency and amount of live food.