female giant armadillos have two teats and have a gestational period of about five months. evidence points to only giving birth once every three years. little is known with certainty about their life history, although it is thought that the young are weaned by about seven to eight months of age, and that the mother periodically seals up the entrance to burrows containing younger offspring, presumably to protect them from predators. although they have never bred in captivity, a wild-born giant armadillo at san antonio zoo was estimated to have been around sixteen years old when it died.