Breastfeeding a stranger’s child

The alternative being a starving baby….i think I’d go with the lady was amazing for breastfeeding the hungry baby. Would I find it “normal” to breastfeed a strangers baby ok, nope but in this specific example it was a lovely thing to do.

I would bf someone's child if they needed to be fed and there was no other option.

I've read that sometimes if you adopt a baby you can re awaken your boobs and feed the baby.

I do think it’s rather beautiful how mammals will foster the young of other mammal species as well as their own species. There was a story in the James Herriot books about a kitten who was fostered by a sow. He grew up into a very sleek and handsome cat with an unusually glossy coat.

I BF both of mine, and wouldn’t have had a problem with feeding anyone else’s baby in an emergency. Likewise I’d have been grateful to anyone who did the same for one of mine in such circs.

Talking of such emergencies, I once heard a R4 talk by an elderly woman who’d been snowed in during WW2, with a young baby, on her own, no help anywhere near, her milk had dried up and she had nothing else - except for her German Shepherd dog, which had recently had puppies.

So in desperation she put her baby to the dog, which accepted it quite happily.

At the time when she was speaking, the ‘baby’ was long grown up, a healthy adult.

And livestock were used to feed human babies in centuries past. That’s why they are called nanny goats. Cheaper than human wet nurses and less likely to spread disease.

I think that’s really kind of her to do. I’d also do the same if they needed me to. Wet nursing was a common practice, historically even royalty were wet nursed sometimes.

I'm struggling to think of circumstances where this would be necessary, but I guess if the DM of the DC was taken ill or died suddenly in a remote place then it might happen. But this used to happen all the time. Have you never heard of wet nursing? I agree it's far from ideal, as BM is a bodily fluid, so you really need to know that the person feeding your baby is a safe source of milk, but in an emergency, you do what needs to be done.

I would definitely had fed a strangers baby if needed. I don’t think I would feed an older child that could have food or other drinks (even though I fed my daughter til 2 years old).

Why?

It used to be completely commonplace, now it’s not, perhaps since formula’s been on the scene. But it’s just nourishment. Nothing weird about it imo.

I was about to mention this!

I had a hard time with breastfeeding, but if circumstances required it I wouldn't hesitate to feed a hungry young baby if their Mum couldn't.

YABU
the child was in a dangerous situation without food or hydrations as breast milk is both.
you do whatever is needed to help.

its just food. Yes it’s a bonding act normally and I wouldn’t love someone else to do it daily for my kid, but I’d be so grateful if I needed help. And if it came to it and someone needed my help, I would. We should look after each other if we can.

For hundreds of years being a wet nurse was an absolute lifeline for many working class women and one of the very few ways they could earn a living.

Yes, breastfeeding can be intimate and fulfilling just as sex is sometimes but that's not the main purpose of it. The primary purpose is to keep little mammals alive.

This thread, and the majority of people posting, makes me believe in humanity again, after the horrible news in the last 24 hours. To breastfeed someone's hungry baby is such a natural thing to do. I would absolutely do it.

The situation is right there in the OP? Having once spent 8 hours unexpectedly stranded airside in a tiny airport in Namibia I can see how it can quite easily have happened.

Maybe the parents of the baby in need didn't have enough formula for an unexpected diversion and/or delay. Maybe they did but it had been lost or left on a plane or spilled. Maybe there was nowhere to make it up in the tiny airport.

Interesting thread OP. I'm much more disturbed by the (thankfully few) respondents who would prefer to let a starving baby starve than feed them or have them fed, than I am by the idea of sharing breastmilk.

Back in the 40s my granny had a neighbour who had twins and struggled to feed them both: granny had a really good supply. She used to just feed one of the neighbour's babies as needed. Not weird then, shouldn't be weird now.

I don’t think it’s weird, it’s just unusual nowadays. I’d have been happy to feed a friend’s baby if needed, and vice versa.

I think I’d have made an excellent wet nurse back in the day. Despite being modest of bust, I made more milk than I knew what to do with and could’ve fed a clutch of babies as well as my own.

I wouldn’t have an issue giving breastmilk to another baby or mine receiving from another if everyone was free of any bugs that could be passed on.

Completely natural, and of course the baby should be fed! I saw a story about a newborn baby who was fed by a cop who had recently had her own baby, the baby was in distress, abandoned and hungry.
I thought it was one of the loveliest, most natural things I’d ever heard.

I think it is perfectly natural in a situation of need, I would feed someone else's baby and let them feed mine if the baby needed it urgently. I think you're overthinking it.

Yeah this is my opinion. I'd do it, but I can totally see that it would feel a bit odd. Same as if there was a situation where my child was the one who needed the milk and someone else breastfeeding him was the only option...would be grateful, but it would feel strange!! Intimate is the right word. I had a dream once that a friend looked after my DS during which she fed him and I felt betrayed by them both. Subconscious throws out some strange scenarios sometimes 😂

I also donated to the milk bank, but it felt more removed/less personal than the physical act of doing i directly.

I would swallow any feelings of discomfort to prevent my baby from going gungry. Yes its a very inimate act but i coulf not see any baby starving and in distress if i could help it

I remember seeing a lactating police officer in the US finding an abandoned crying newborn when out on a call with colleagues, and she did it.
I thought she was absolutely amazing and I found it very very moving.

I'm fully in the camp for feeding the baby and don't find it ick. But it would have terrified me had such a situation ever arisen, I found bf painful and so hard, the thought of attempting this for another baby scares me! I'm too old now though for this to be anything but theoretical personally.

That's so interesting; do you mind telling us which culture that is?

I haven't breastfed anyone else's baby, but I would if it was necessary - even tho yes, I imagine it would feel a bit weird... but that wouldn't be a good enough reason not to do it IMO.