Cockatiel having a fit or seizure

Question
Hi there. I have just been given an approximately 3mth old female (I think) cockatiel and twice in the week I have had her she has
had what appears to be a fit or seizure. First one occurred on day two when I let her out for a fly. She bumped against the wall a
couple of time but it didn't seem hard. She suddenly fell to the ground and started flapping her wings maddly, panting heavily
with her neck stretched out, her feet pointed straight towards her tail, mostly on her back. After approx 5 mins she stopped and
pretty much went back to normal.

The second one occurred today (day 6 of owning her). She was in her cage and I noticed she was flapping her wings a bit every
now and again quite frantically. I kept an eye on her and she seemed ok for about 10 mins, then suddenly she had a fit again.
This time I held her against me and her body felt twisted and stiff, she was panting madly and I am sure I could hear a rasping
sound coming from her tummy (lungs?) area. This went on for a couple of minutes then she stopped. Her nostrils were flared and
red, she was panting quite a bit on her perch and now, about 20minutes later, she is fine. Eating away, biting her toys etc. During
the 'episode' she did cry out a couple of times as her friend (I have two) was calling out to her frantically (I took her away from the
cage into another room).

Any thoughts?  

Answer
Hello,
I am not a complete expert on seizures, but I do know that you might have to take her to an avian vet to have her looked at, making sure you tell the vet what she has been doing. I know someone who has a macaw, and everyday the macaw will have a seizure, unfortunately, there is nothing to prevent it. The only thing that can help your bird is to take her to a vet, and if she is falling from her perches when this does happen, I would try and put soft bedding at the bottom of the cage so she does not hurt herself. Try and make her cage safe for her. You can learn more about bird seizures here..

http://www.avianweb.com/seizures.html

Hope this helps,
Carly