diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 014408a..49bcc0f 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -11,3 +11,4 @@ dist/
 *.jpg
 acceptance-report.json
 ir_final.json
+scripts/.env
diff --git a/scripts/start_dev_agent.sh b/scripts/start_dev_agent.sh
index 454b172..3dc987b 100644
--- a/scripts/start_dev_agent.sh
+++ b/scripts/start_dev_agent.sh
@@ -4,6 +4,12 @@
 
 set -e
 
+# Source local secrets if available (not tracked by git)
+SCRIPT_DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "$0")" && pwd)"
+if [ -f "$SCRIPT_DIR/.env" ]; then
+    source "$SCRIPT_DIR/.env"
+fi
+
 # Load from environment or default values
 export GITEA_API_TOKEN="${GITEA_API_TOKEN:-}"
 export GITEA_URL="${GITEA_URL:-http://localhost:3000}"