I don’t often like to show off, but Gila 41 (Jane, DMB fans will know) was my 2024 holdback and she has really become a stunner. I certainly can’t claim this, only her parents and God have that honor, but I’m glad to have made the introduction. Her (I guessed female at birth and it certainly seems to be shaping up that way) parents are female 03 Belle and male 23 Thunder. These Gilas were not paired this year but I may put them together again next year after this! She has always had a sweet disposition and has remained that way. Some Gilas start off spicy and stay that way, Jane is a sweetie pie in contrast.
Gila 41 as a baby
We have eggs incubating now and should be hatching around Halloween, reach out if you want to join our 2026 waitlist! ¡Buen provecho!
With all the excitement of breeding season coming to an end, the only thing to do now is leave the eggs alone and wait until a very distant Halloween arrives. Though I do check on the eggs every day (making sure phorid flies have not gotten into the boxes and oxygen exchange is taking place) they’re not moved or messed with until hatching. I found if the eggs make it through July they’ll usually make it to term. Though, I did have an egg almost make it all the way and then suddenly die with a grown baby inside a few years back. That was a bummer to say the least!
As with all things Gila monster nothing is straightforward. We had a very good year with eggs, though two first time females paired with first time males did not produce viable eggs, but that was to be expected. Are stalwart female females Belle and Heather did what they do and produced beautiful eggs, laid on time at the same time. With Belle and Heather I was able to predict oviposition within two days of my projected date, which is huge in keeping track of how things should be going. This year another female (Lucy) became egg bound after laying three eggs which was a first. I was able to take care of it myself and so far it seems to have worked as that large egg was passed as she is still alive. Egg bound Gila‘s are a real threat to their health and proper monitoring and action are required. Egg binding will kill a female Gila monster without doubt, and time is of the essence in this case.
Now the focus is on nutrition as we prepare for next year. Armed with another year of success and failure I keep detailed notes and reflect upon what worked, what didn’t work, and speak to other breeders about their trials and tribulations. It’s easy to see why casual breeders have trouble with success breeding Gila monsters. It takes a lot of focus, dedication, and time to have repeated success. Hats off to all my friends and fellow Gila breeders making it happen every year!
Over the past few years successfully breeding Gila monsters I have seen an interesting behavior that is fascinating; nest box guarding! Each year after laying eggs my females back fill the nest boxes and then vigorously defend the nest. I cannot re-connect the cages with the males for at least a month after oviposition! The moms get extremely aggressive and if I put my hand in to grab or move something they run over to attack.
I am curious how this works in the wild as it’s obviously an innate behavior, but with wild Gila monsters breeding habits virtually unknown to us it may be some time before we know the answer.
Once the female Gila monster backfills the nest I know viable egg laying is over (I also check on ultrasound to be sure). Some slugs can still be laid after the nest is filled, but they are most certainly bad.
I how in the future we can piece the puzzle together between wild and captive behaviors and shed more light into the secret lives of Gila monsters!
Yesterday one of our females laid her first egg of the 2026 Gila monster (Heloderma suspectum) breeding season, followed up by two more females laying today! There are still more to come but the excitement is growing! So far only three slugs out of 13 eggs, but I do expect a few others to turn over the next few weeks. Stay tuned for more posts and updates!
The pre egg-laying shed (what I calls PELS) is a sure signthings are progressing reproductively inside the female. This shed is different from any other – the pieces come off in large bits whereas it is usually small chunks over a period of 10 days or so during a regular shed. I ultrasound every few days to keep an eye on the progression and keep detailed notes to try and anticipate egg laying. PELS occurs after ovulation and sends me a visual signal to get things ready for oviposition. Nest boxes ready? Check. Incubator set up? Check. The hopes and dreams of getting lucky enough to seeing a baby Gila hatch this year? Check, check, double check!!! Two of the five females we are breeding this year are deep in PELS (Belle and Heather pictured here), two more are starting (Misty and Paisley) and the last is just starting to ovulate (Lucy). Fingers crossed for another great year here at Goatsby’s Place and to all my friends breeding Gila monsters! Here’s to an amazing 2026!
This was a cool find from May 2025 Herpetological Review I picked up while doing my daily scour for new Gila info. Gilas are so secretive it’s a wonder we can get them to breed in captivity with all the activity and interaction they have with their keepers! There’s also a related video which may be NSFW (but in a scientific way) which I will link below. I think my life would feel pretty fulfilled if I got to trail Gilas in the wild for research.
There aren’t many anecdotes of Gila monster bites the century, and especially not fatalities. When this envenomation occurred, there was a lot of speculation and talk about the victim’s health and speculative reasons why he died and so many others haven’t. Now the official report has been released and laid to bed any speculation. Check it out and take care of my friends; never underestimate the bite of a venomous reptile!
It’s that time of year of year, time to wake up the monsters and kick off the 2026 Gila monster breeding season! The cages have been cleaned and are ready to go, welcoming back home the inhabitants that have been in quiet winter slumber since December. The rise in temperature takes place over several weeks and continues into March as the Gilas go from complete cold and darkness to daily life of regular light and temperature changes.
Wakey wakey, mice and eggy’s (or something like that..)
Last year was our best year not only in success of eggs hatched, but also producing some very uniquely patterned babies. Our hyper pink line produced one baby which is already showing its insanely pink coloration, the aberrant line is producing some amazingly interesting patterns.
So pink at only five months old! Photo by ST who is shaming me with these photos for selling this Gila:)
As with every season, hopes and dreams abound thinking of the pairings and who will produce what. Regardless it’s a win, just working with Gilas and producing babies is enough for me. I’ve already started reviewing my notes from previous years and re-reading my mentor Dr. Mark Seward’s “Gila Monster Propagation” and other books and articles to see if I can glean anything new (which I always do).
One of our 2025 aberrant baby Gilas.Our 2024 holdback is getting more orange everyday!
One thing is for certain, it will be another amazing season so stay tuned for updates max we embark on a new adventure in Gila monster! The 2026 waitlist is getting pretty beefy, if you want to reserve a Gila do so now! This is especially true if you are looking for a hyper pink or “Gators” orange, or the very limited aberrant line!
The pairs have been paired and soon we get to see how things went. I’ve been doing this long enough not to expect miracles, but I must admit to being a little more than excited about having six females, including our axanthic, potentially laying eggs this year. It is always a bit like Christmas morning when you’re a kid waiting for Gila monster eggs, you’re not quite sure what you’re going to get, but you hope it will be everything you’ve dreamed of all year. All the planning, cooling, feeding, and pairing comes to fruition or failure now.
The Gilas get very close throughout the season.
Setting up the pairs in hopes of achieving specific traits such as high pink or orange, reduced or abnormal patterns, or axanthic, is meticulously planned based on babies that have been produced here. I am in touch with many of the folks that have purchased Gilas from us here at Goatsby’s Place and track how they grow to try and replicate these traits. The axanthic line, originally from Seward’s project, is very exciting and we hope to have some 100% hets this year from that pairing.
Smile you’re on Candid Camera! Pairs are watched and recorded throughout the day and night for mating activity.
After oviposition the long wait begins. It’s been common for eggs that will not make it to term to expire within the first 30 days after being laid, though they can go bad at any time really. Never count your Gilas before they hatch is a good analogy! There’s a lot of hurry up wait at this point but it’s all part of the process in breeding Gila monsters.
Winnie the axanthic Gila laying out of her shelter.
Every year starts out with hope and we are thankful that it has ended with baby Gila monsters for the past six years. Some eggs are not fertile or make it to full term, but as long a a baby Gila pips its head out of the egg in the fall it is all worth it!
Loading screen from The Bard’s Tale (one of the first computer RPG’s from 1985)
The Gila monsters at Goatsby’s Place are waking up after the long winter’s nap, officially kicking off the 2025 Gila monster breeding season!
One of our newer additions is waking up after being brumated since December. It takes them a week or so to really get moving again.
Every year starts off with a lot of hope, but this year is even more hopeful as we have a lot of exciting things going on this season. We have a pair of beautiful banded Gilas that are new to the mix, and two females that bred for the first time last year (one is Winnie the Seward axanthic Gila, the other is the stunning pink banded Gila Lucy), and our stalwart females Heather and Belle will be in the mix again this year as well. As the Gilas wakey wakey I will start ultrasounds this weekend and feeding begins next week. First will be small meals of single adult mice, and once they defecate regular feedings will begin.
Lucy was not bred last year to build her weight and strength to successfully breed this year.
Stay tuned for more updates and photos, and if you wish to get on our list for 2025 please do so earlier than later. We have a healthy list already (many are repeat customers which is amazing!) and as a smaller-scale breeder, babies will be limited!
Goatsby's Place 