Gabriel Foundation

This place is amazing! Their dedication, commitment and love for all feathered friends is beyond words! The cleanliness and care of the birds is phenomenal. My family has adopted several birds from here. We also enjoy volunteering to assist the staff by cleaning cages and visiting with the birds. If you get a chance to visit or donate time or money… I know it would be appreciated!
A fan… Kim H.

The birds that are being taken care of here have found a little bit of birdy heaven. Some have been abused neglected rejected and abandoned.
Looking for a bird? Get involved and volunteer to help these wonderful birds who did not put themselves in this predicament.
Adopt a bird rather than buy a baby.
Looking for a talker ?? Get one that already has that down pat.
Take some time to learn and interact with the bird. The time you spend here is nothing that you should be spending if you had purchased a baby.
People just don’t realize how much effort is needed to keep birds.
And they can outlive you. Another reason some are here. Loss of their home of many years.
Go on a tour. Elizabeth location has outside flight cages. Very impressive. These birds are very fortunate to have landed at the gabriel foundation.
Thank you to all that make this a reality for these special creatures.

I’ve been dealing with this organization for over 9 years. They are the real deal. There are public tours regularly scheduled every weekend. Anyone who is truly interested in touring and volunteering is able to do so. I’ve never had trouble accessing staff. They truly care about proper education of the public for what it takes to care and be responsible for parrots.

I have been trying to adopt 2 African Grey parrots from TGF for a little over 4 months now. I’ve completed essay questions, behavioral videos, I was instructed to buy books, (which I did) even as far as a power point presentation which included a daily schedule for the birds along with what was essentially a lesson plan for the birds. This was to ensure that we enriched the birds lives and make sure they were stimulated enough. EVERY Friday when we come interact with the birds they «observe» us and take video of the visit. Upon leaving we are told that the next visit will be the last visit and we will be taking our new family members home. Still no birds… I’ve jumped through every hoop they’ve laid in front of me and I’m getting no support what so ever. I honestly believe that I could have already completed the adoption process for a small child and have him or her home already. Short of studying parrots in the wild for the next 20 years, I’m not sure what else I could do to prove my worth to these people. I haven’t received a return call in days. Is there anything that can be done to bring these shady practices to light so others can see that this foundation is nothing more than a front for some crazy bird lady to hoard these very birds she claims to want to protect? There are over 1,300 birds in the facility and most of them do not appear happy or healthy. Having a negative star rating would be a useful tool when rating this foundation. If you REALLY REALLY want a bird… stay the hell away from here.

FRAUD ALERT !! 75 $ ADOPTION FEE IS A SCAM/​FRAUD !!THEY DON’T CARE ABOUT YOU THEY JUST WANT YOUR MONEY! I should have read all the Unilocal reviews and negative reviews all over the internet before going to them. Signed up 6+ weeks ago sent 75 $ Never recived anything in the mail. Tried contacting them multiple times, Nothing but different excuses from each person i talk to. Received an email from Julie stating they had not sent us the required material a month out and that she would. 2 weeks since that email and we still haven’t gotten anything. Dawn the person that answers on facebook said me asking them why we haven’t recived it is «inappropriate and unprofessional». Insulted me personally and lied to me saying the materials had been sent out when they never had-​according to julies email. 6 weeks out and we still don’t have a meeting set or coordinator or anything done at all –they ask you to complete a 11 page test and 5 essays and then never even read them at all. My wife is a wild Raptor rehaber and it still wasn’t enough. Whats the point in forcing everyone to do work that you wont even read ?? Also you told my wife our problems would lead to an improvement and thanked us for bringing it to your attention — however people have been making the same complaint for years — and obviously nothing has changed. THEY DON’T CARE ABOUT YOU THEY JUST WANT YOUR MONEY! If you would like proof please feel free to contact me on facebook and ill send you copies of our entire communication with them — Please spread the word on this folks! its a shame when they drop the ball and then blame it on the victim of the situation. Does that really seem reasonable to anyone out there?

New person in charge of volunteers as of sometime this past year (Wolfe?). She seems very efficient and competent. Although we haven’t been able to get involved during this time I suspect the whole experience is a lot smoother.

I was looking for my first parrot and was utterly lost. Thank goodness I found The Gabriel Foundation. They have a wonderful class that teaches so much about parrot ownership that you must take before you adopt. They also literally have hundreds of parrots up for adoption and you are allowed to go at your own pace and visit with the parrots as much as you need to make the proper decision on which parrot is right for your household. They were wonderful throughout the whole experience. I ultimately found a parrot to adopt from a co-​workers relative, but that was only a coincidence. I fully planned on adopting from The Gabriel Foundation, and would have if the perfect situation hadn’t have arisen prior to adoption.
The only reason a gave 4 stars instead of 5 is because they can be slow to respond to emails or phone calls initially, depending on what volunteer (re: unpaid worker) gets your email or call first. But if you’re serious about adopting and don’t get a response within a few days to your initial request, you’ll call or email again, making a note that it’s your second request, and you WILL get a response. Once you are paired with an adoption coordinator, you’re golden. That was my experience and it seems to be the exact same experience of other adopters I’ve talked too.

I’m an experienced parrot person with 20 years’ experience. Like others here, I’ve called and emailed numerous times to inquire about the possibility of adopting birds and touring the facility. I have NEVER received a response to any of them.
I’ve seen many of their «adoptable» parrots listed for 7 – 10 years. They’d have had room for the 31 macaws if they’d do a better job responding to calls and emails. I find it confusing that they would sell 31 parrots to a breeder, yet they state on their web page that they are «A parrot welfare organization provides for the complete physical, psychological and environmental well being of the parrots in it’s care.» If selling parrots to a breeder is the way they provide for the complete physical, psychological and environmental well being of their birds, I can’t believe they’re what they say they are.

I’m a veterinary student who had the privilege to visit TGF for a few days. They take wonderful care of their animals and each person on the premises (whether a volunteer or paid staff member) cares deeply about birds.
I can’t comment on experiences that others have had about not being able to submit an adoption application, but I know that these people work very hard to get animals into good homes. Having a fair amount of non-​profit experience myself, there are a lot of demands, particularly when your organization is in need.
Bottom line: The Gabriel Foundation is a wonderful organization dedicated to parrot welfare. They save a lot of animals, and they do a ton of outreach to help people become better bird owners. If you have to wait to get through, I think it’s well worth that wait.

My bird suffered an untreated injury when I used the foundation for the long term foster care of my Cockatoo. I was out of the country and in the photos they sent I could tell something was wrong because of feather destruction. I tried everything to get him proper care while I was gone through e-​mail, phone calls, working with my vet in OR all to be told it wasn’t up to me. His care was the call of the vet on staff.
The long and short of it is he was there for about 8 months and on taking him to his fantastic vet in OR it was clear (through ex-​rays) he suffered an injury that had been left untreated. He is on the mend and feeling much better with very little feather dist ruction now. Thank goodness my baby finally got the care he needed.
DON’T TRUST YOUR BIRD TO THESE FOLKS!!! Good intentions do not make for good educated care.

I wouldn’t even expect a reply from this place. I tried to download the application to adopt, but it wasn’t working. I called numerous times in an attempt to bring this to their attention. I called to ask about what kinds of birds they currently have. I called to set up a tour. I never once received a response.
Someone I know had found an injured bird and tried calling to see if they’d take it in because she didn’t know how to care for it. No response there either.
If these people really want to help these birds and put them out for adoption, they need to respond to people first!
Just so the other poster knows– I have volunteered at other non-​profits in the past. I may have needed to wait a couple days for a response or to give a response, but I always received one. This should be so even if it comes to the well-​being of an animal. With TGF, I’ve called on several occasions, tried different times during the day, nothing. You shouldn’t need to be in their face. How can they expect to receive donations or adopt birds out if they cannot respond to an email or a phone call?

As a follow-​up to Ellen’s assumption that «those who complain about the Foundation’s policies do so because they don’t want to go through the adoption process (which includes a 12-​page application)», I simply had to return to state that I have absolutely NO interest in adopting from TGF, and never will given their support of wholesale breeders and recent actions regarding the case of the 31 macaws in Virginia (
). My opinion of TGF has absolutely zero to do with their adoption policies, but with their regard toward parrot welfare in general.
The multiple attempts I’ve made in the past to tour the facility and volunteer prove that they aren’t interested in investing time in attracting experienced volunteers. In addition, I’ve flat out heard employees at The Bird Brain lie to customers regarding the situation of the 31 macaws — something that TGF should have been completely open about.
Sour grapes about adopting? Not at all. (I’ve never applied and never will, and have nothing against a lengthy application that screens potential homes. As a rescue worker, I appreciate.) Appalled at the organization’s ulterior motives, support of terrible breeders (wholesale? come on!!), and retro-​active participation in a case that should have resulted in the conviction of animal abusers?
YES
As far as the comments made regarding the number of birds at TGF and not wanting them to end up in shelters, TGF essentially IS a shelter, albeit a parrot-​specific one. They have so many birds on premises that on last check, the facility was full, hence the reason for the 31 macaws going to a breeding facility in Florida instead of staying at TGF’s Colorado premises. I’m always an advocate for parrot rescue, but I don’t understand how a parrot rescue could agree to shelter 31 macaws (thus preventing the owners — who abandoned these birds with no shelter, fresh water, or food after a home foreclosure — from facing a trial), and then move those birds to a breeding facility, owned by Julie Murad’s long-​time friend, a breeder who sells unweaned baby birds whole sale to pet stores only.
THAT is why I choose not to support TGF, and give the organization 1 star. I don’t appreciate other individuals attempting to speak for me by making false assumptions. Haven’t we all learned the phrase «To assume. .. ?»

The Gabriel Foundation rescues and adopts out parrots, but it is so much more than a bird shelter. While, yes, you can adopt anything from a budgie to a macaw from their shelter in Elizabeth, you can also take an online Birdie Basics class, whether you already own a bird, are thinking of acquiring one, or simply want to learn about parrots.
The Gabriel Foundation, a non-​profit organization, is amazing to tour– if you’re not too sensitive to noise. It’s about 200 decibels in the shelter at all times. Welcome to life with parrots. The birds range from shy or aggressive to friendly and loving– and the staff at the shelter knows that parrots are, more than anything else, fickle and picky. They recognize this by letting the birds choose their adopters more than the other way around– if a bird happens to fall in love with you, but isn’t the species you’re looking for, they’ll strongly encourage you to change your parameters and take that birdie home.
Among other amazing services, The Gabriel Foundation also conducts low cost microchip clinics for birds– check their website for the schedule. While you’re at it, make a donation– if you love birds, this is an organization that does more than any other in the Denver area for them, so show your support!