I'm so sorry, I didn't realize that Kermit was having actual "seizure" episodes. It's a very good idea to stay ahead of her Avian Vet visits for sure, and good for you for doing so....Is your vet either a Certified Avian Vet or an Avian Specialist Vet (not just an "Exotic's Vet" I hope)? Have you had full, routine blood-work done on her yet? If not, I highly suggest that you get it done ASAP, as very often the causes of seizure-activity in birds is either metabolic in nature, or due to a toxin, both of which normal blood-work will pick up. Plus, it would be a very good idea to have a set of baseline blood levels on Kermit for comparison each year (maybe every 6 months in Kermit's case, if you can afford to do it). You'll also get her Liver and Kidney functions, as well as be able to rule-out any infection, anemia, etc. that may also be the cause of her issues. And if her WBC's come back elevated (along with other levels) then that would warrant some cultures to try to find the infection. Long-term infections also cause everything you're describing. A regular, plain film x-ray isn't a bad idea either, just to completely rule-out any growths/masses/tumors on say her pituitary gland, her thyroid, etc., as well as any enlarged organs such as her liver, kidney, pancreas, etc., and any issues with her respiratory system, most importantly her air sacs, as birds have such a complex respiratory system that it can be responsible for tons of different medical problems, namely heavy breathing or what looks to be anxiety attacks, or more often a lack of oxygen due to pressure on their air sacs, which can commonly result in seizure-like activity. I've seen more than a few birds with enlarged livers or kidneys, or with a growth/mass/tumor, in which the enlarged organ or the growth had been putting pressure on one or more of the bird's air sacs, and this was causing the bird to have seizure-like activity, shortness of breath after little activity and even at rest, and what were described as being "anxiety" or "panic" attacks, all of which was due to the bird not getting enough oxygen and the bird panicking because they could not get enough "air". Enlarged livers in bird are one of the number one causes of air sac compression, with growths/tumors being second, and the number of different issues this can cause is tremendous. So a regular, plain film x-ray will either confirm or rule-out a ton of differential diagnoses that could be causing Kermit's issues....A regular x-ray can even tell you whether or not Kermit is suffering from certain nutritional deficiencies as well, based on her bone health.
I always tell people who have a bird with a "mystery" health issue, whether chronic or sporadic like Kermit's, that the two tests they need to get done immediately are a full blood-work panel (routine, no special blood tests until you get these results back) and a plain old full-body x-ray. Usually it's a combination of these two tests that solve the mystery.
There's no reason why Kermit can't live a full, healthy, and happy life that lasts for 30-40 years, not at all based on what you're describing. It's all going to depend upon finding an experienced CAV or Avian Specialist Vet, if you haven't already, and then, if necessary, you have to force the issue of doing the blood work and the x-ray to start things off. And these two tests aren't even expensive, at most a full exam, routine blood work, and an x-ray should cost $200 or less, and they will most-likely give you a really good idea of what is going on, if not an actual diagnosis....And if nothing else, they will tell the CAV what tests they need to do next.
And regardless, ALL BIRDS, and I emphasize ALL of them, even the "completely healthy" ones, should be getting a full wellness-exam that includes routine blood work and a Fecal Culture once every year anyway! I hate it when people say "No, I've never had my bird to a vet before because he's always been healthy"...They don't realize how counter-intuitive that way of thinking is...
***Uhg, end of mini-rant. Anyway, I hope that Kermit does really well at the vet, keep us updated, and again, if you haven't already had these simple, basic tests done yet, I highly, highly recommend that you get them done ASAP and start the process of figuring out what is going on with her. For whatever reason, and after years and years of experience I still can't tell you why, but it's extremely common, actually it's almost "the norm", for a pet parrot to have a long-time, chronic health problem, or a sporadic health problem that pops-up from time to time, and for them to have these issues for years and years, and NEVER have had even the most basic diagnostic testing done, such as routine blood-work and a regular x-ray...I can't tell you how many hundreds, yes hundreds of birds that have been surrendered to the Avian Rescue that I volunteer at, and that when I'm going over the surrender paperwork with the bird's owners they list a long-time health problem (I'm the medical liaison) such as sporadic seizure activity, fainting spells, labored breathing after little exertion, etc., and they write that the bird has had these health problems for years and years, sometimes for decades, and when I ask them what medical tests they've had done and what conditions have been ruled-out, they tell me that the bird has NEVER had a single x-ray, never had even the most basic blood work done, never had a Fecal Culture done, nothing. ****And the really disturbing thing is that most of the time the owners HAVE TAKEN the bird to a vet, even to a CAV or Avian Specialist Vet, sometimes several times or on a bi-yearly basis, and even though the vet was aware for years if not decades that the bird has been having these health issues for years and years, the vet still never ran a single diagnostic test! And when I start probing a little bit, they often also tell me that they had asked their Avian Vet several times if they should have blood work done, or an x-ray, sometimes the owners have even been willing to pay for really expensive testing like a CT Scan or an MRI, and every time they had asked about running tests to try to figure out what their bird's problem was, their Avian Vet told them something to the effect of "Well, the seizures haven't killed him, he's had several of them and he's had no lasting issues from them, so why put the bird through a needle-stick for blood work?" That's always what they tell me their vet has said to them, something to that effect, and not only is it untrue, as a simple, routine blood draw from a bird's neck takes 10 seconds and is actually less-stressful for them than a toenail clipping or a beak-filing is by far, it's irresponsible...It's almost like a lot of the vets that these people are taking their birds to are either afraid to handle birds or to do a blood draw on a bird, or to set a bird up for an x-ray, or they just don't want to bother....So I've come to the conclusion that you as the bird's owner must absolutely force the issue of at least doing the most basic diagnostic testing to figure out what in the world is going on with your bird...And if your vet STILL refuses to run blood work or take an x-ray to start the diagnostic process, then you need to find a new Avian Vet who will. Our birds can't advocate for themselves, so it's up to us to advocate for them.
