Hi, Welcome to BackYard Chickens! Did your vet think this was nutritionally derived?
Seizures in waterfowl typically consist of the bird flapping around uncontrollably, leg paddling, loss of coordination, stiffened body, or twitching of the leg. This can last from several minutes to possibly an hour depending on what’s affecting the bird, this can be caused by any disorder that causes a sudden electrical discharge in the nervous system. Seizures in ducks is most commonly caused by a vitamin deficiency in either thiamine(B1) or vitamin E, Neurological Damage which happened during incubation or after, infectious disease can also cause seizures , Duck Viral Hepatitis is one along with Aspergillosis and West Nile Virus. If your bird has been experiencing seizures it should be taken to an avian vet as soon as possible to find out the underlying cause of the seizures.
If you are unable to, the bird should be placed in a warm/dry/quiet location, and ensure there is nothing in the cage/pen that the bird may be able to hurt itself on, lining the pen with soft towels to prevent injury may be advised. The owner must do a total evaluation of the bird and its past history. A few questions should be considered, did this happen overnight, has the bird had trauma to the head in the past, Is the bird being fed a correct nutritional diet, did the parent stock appear healthy, has the bird been in contact with anything toxic or recently been in contact with other birds, are other flock members showing symptoms? If your bird has been exposed to other fowl recently, or other flock members are starting to show symptoms, a Viral Infectious Disease or Toxin Ingestion would most likely be the cause. If the bird is crested (Tuff on the head), and had trauma to the head recently, neurological damage would be the likely cause. If the bird is being fed a diet low in thiamine or foods that containing a thiamine inhibitors, a thiamine deficiency would most likely be the cause.
If you believe your bird has an infectious disease it should be taken to a vet IMEDIATLEY, very little care can be done at home, this is serious, DVH mortality rates are often 90% with young ducklings if left untreated. Always consult a vet if possible, but if toxin ingestion is thought to be the cause the bird should either be taken to a vet for an antitoxin or the owner should perform a toxin flush, using either activated charcoal, molasses, or Epsom salt. Refer to this link for dosages-
A bird that is thought to be nutritionally derived should be started on BOTH vitamin E and Thiamine (B1) since it’s hard to differentiate which one would be the cause. Very little can be done for neurological damage, euthanasia may be advised.
Along with providing a safe pen, birds should be offered food and water very often.
