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!
The last of our 2024 Gila monster egg is hatching as I write this. Looks to be another stunning banded Gila! The baby Gilas take a few days to come out of the egg, and it seems to take every ounce of newborn energy to do so. It’s also amazing to see as the size of the baby defies the space in the egg. All the trials and tribulations throughout the year just melt away when that little Gila pokes its nose through the egg.
All that in there? How?!I think we all wish we can get back in the egg sometimes..
Our 2024 Gilas are sold out, and 2025 is filling up fast. If you are interested in getting one of our Gilas please reach out now to get on the waiting list.
This is the third attempt to update everyone on what the haps be here at Goatsby’s Place and more importantly how the Gila monsters are doing. Every year of breeding Gila monsters brings new insights, challenges, and the understanding that my knowledge of these fascinating lizards is always less than I think. Emotions throughout the season range from hopeful and excited, to perplexed and frustrated. At the end of the day it’s a wholly humbling experience living with the world’s most intriguing reptile.
I love when we can start to see the coloring through the egg!
First thing, 2024’s Gila monster breeding season yielded four good eggs (out of 17 total laid) that are looking likely to hatch. With T-15 days to hatching I’m hopeful they’ll make it all the way. There are few things as exciting (to me, at least) as seeing baby Gilas emerge from the egg. I vividly remember reading Dr. Seward’s book and that iconic photo of a baby coming out of the egg dreaming one day this would be a reality. Six years into successfully breeding Gila monsters brings me no less joy!
The connected nest boxes, so the female can go in and out and dog around as she pleases.
This year we tried some new things to help increase viable eggs including connecting cages for paired males and females, nest boxes connected to the cage , and having monogamous pairs throughout the breeding season. We had a total of four pairs, two stalwart females and two first timers, and a male that just came to age and bred his first time. All were cooled last winter and testes and follicle growth was good.
Snuggle time, Gila style
But, all is not as it seemed under the ultrasound as three females produced, the first timer axanthic produced all slugs, and one female did not produce any eggs. It later turned out the the newbie male she was paired with had a shrunken testicle that was the start of a hemipenal impaction – didn’t see that coming. So, four eggs this year and I’m perfectly happy with that.
Female buried in the new nest box
There’s more to cover for the season, but wanted to share this update for now as we count down the day to 2024 captive born baby Gila monster hatchlings! Thanks for stopping by Goausby Place!
Goatsby's Place 