Owl finches won't breed!

[Nofty]

A few years ago I had a mixed aviary of all male finches and recently I have decided to get back into the hobby.

Two to three months ago I decided to get back into the hobby with the addition of attempting to breed these birds. For this I have chosen to buy a pair of owl finches.

However I do not seem to have any luck with getting them to breed, up until now they have only laid one egg which wasn't fertilized. I feel like I do not know what else I can do to encourage them to breed as I have given them grit, cuttle-bone, water, mixed finch seed, millet, soft food and even a nest which they do arrange and sleep in together. I also give them dried meal-worms every now and then which they do seem to enjoy.

They are currently inside for the cold winter months (This is more due to me not wanting them to get wet during the time it rains rather than because it actually is cold as I live in Malta, which remains quite warm during the winter).

Except for when I need to change their food and water I avoid disturbing them and apart from not breeding as I would like them to they seem happy and are both acting what I believe to be normally.

Am I doing something wrong?, Should I just give them more time and see what happens? or is there anything else I could do to encourage them to breed?

Any help would be greatly appreciated as I would love to have a few additions to my finch family.

[isobea]

Nofty - Hi and welcome to the forum!
I used to have and breed owls back in 2010 to 2012. So I had to actually go back into my records to see if I could find any useful information. I believe our climate here is not that much different from yours so the breeding season might be similar.
Here is what I found: my owls would breed mostly in the summertime (July/August). They are very agile and active birds but still want some densely planted areas in their aviary. My pair would build free standing nests in the shrubbery. They used baskets only for sleeping in the non-breeding season. Once the babies hatch, they need lots of mini mealworms, aphids and other small insects (especially during the first week or so). My birds never fed egg food or dried insects to their very young babies.
Hope this helps. You might just have to wait until late spring. You could also talk to MariusStegmann. He breeds owls but lives in South Africa so for his birds it is spring right now.
Iso

[Nofty]

Thanks for your help. My owls currently have a box nest, so I might change it to a basket nest to see whether they prefer it and start using that instead.

As for plants, I'm not sure how I'm going to get them into the cage they currently have as I don't believe big enough plants will fit through the doors.

Hopefully, it's just not the right time for them and they will breed eventually. Thanks once again.

[isobea]

Nofty - When I mentioned dense plantings or shrubbery, I was thinking about next spring/summer in your aviary. While they are in a cage during the colder months, you could use some fake plants to make it look a little nicer. I left my owls outside even during the winter but my aviary's roof is fully covered. The back and left side of my aviary is wood panels and during rain storms (or really cold nights) I can close the front and right side with plexiglass panels.
Iso

[Nofty]

I'm sorry I might have confused the situation by mentioning the aviary I previously had. I do not have an aviary anymore due to losing interest at the time and then eventually moving.

I have only recently gotten back into the hobby and my current owls are homed in a large cage throughout the year which is moved inside and out depending on the season.

Hope this clears up any confusion, and thanks for your help.