What's the trick to ensure your breasted baby will also take a bottle?

[WhatAnAbsolutePenis]

I breastfed my first two kids. DS1 refuses a bottle until about 6months when he started taking one.
DS2 was breast obsessed and never once took a bottle.

DS3 is due at Christmas and I have to go back to work when he is 11 months so I absolutely need him to be settled without me and confidently taking a bottle.
(I realise sippy cups are an option but I want to secure the comfort of a bottle for their dad to settle them at night before my shift finishes).

Do I introduce a bottle (of expressed breast milk) as soon as my milk comes in?

How often do I give a bottle? Daily? Twice a day?

Could you try combination feeding from the beginning? So breastfeed in the day and go to bed with a bottle of expressed? Then it shouldn't mess with your supply (you could always pump just before the feed at first?).

My youngest had a bottle occasionally in the very early days but I got fed up pumping and just fed myself but by 6 months (when I needed her to take a bottle occasionally) she totally refused and never after that point would touch one! She ended up BFing until gone 2 but thankfully I was a SAHM.

With both mine I've introduced a bottle of expressed milk at around 2 weeks and then made sure they had a bottle at least once a week. I haven't had a problem with either. Friends who have done the same seem mostly to have had no problem, friends who've left introducing a bottle until later have struggled.
Obviously totally anecdotal but that's my experience.

I don’t know if it’s just anecdotal or actually a proven fact but my midwife told me that 4 months was the ‘cut off point’ ie if you didn’t introduce a bottle by then, they probably wouldn’t accept it.

I’ve had to introduce a bottle with both of my EBF DC as I’ve gone back to work very early. I did it with both at around 6 weeks and never had any issues. Both times I’ve asked DH to give the first bottle so they can’t smell me. Only thing I will say is that I’ve used stage 1/newborn tests for ages as they best mimic the flow of milk direct from the breast. When I tried moving DC1 up to stage 2 teats, he always choked on the faster flow.

Sticking with stage one teats also stopped me worrying about him starting to refuse the breast as he got older and prefer the bottle as he was still having to work for the milk, rather than enjoying a faster flow bottle.

I wouldn’t buy that 4 month thing! My DD wouldn’t take a bottle at 4 weeks. Just held it in her mouth and wailed... Planning to try at 2 weeks next time!

Mine had to have milk supplement at birth so the first thing she had was a bottle. I then breastfed exclusively for a couple of weeks then expressed and gave her one bottle a day (night feed = husband = yes!) to keep it up. She never had any qualms about switching it up

Asap I would say!

I only have anecdata, but DD was mix fed (breastmilk, expressed milk, formula) from day 1 and super easy. I think the trick is getting the right teats on the bottle. We tried some and she refused them completely. MAM are good because they are pretty similar to the shape and consistency of an actual nipple, which I guess is the point.

With all 4 of mine I’ve introduced a bottle of formula at 6 weeks (ebf before then)...actually dc1 at 9 weeks..

I used Mam bottles & introduced the bottle at the same feed every day...I never offered the breast again at that feed (10/11am)...the only one that didn’t take the bottle immediately was dc2...but she eventually got it when she realized that’s all was on offer at that time...I would ensure the milk was really warm and used the size 1 tests initially...

I then introduced a 2nd one at 12 weeks and then 4 bottles by 8 months (no breast after that)...

I think it is pure luck! Honestly tried all tips and none worked. Went back at 10 months and it was fine, managed in without me and fed loads when I was around. I was never away for more than 9 hours but quite happy on food whilst I wasn’t there

Thanks.
Ok, by two weeks, every night, nice and warm and MAM teats.

I'm not sure there is a secret.

Dc1 was a bottle refuser despite trying very hard to introduce one. I went back to work as a teacher briefly when she was 5 months old and she went to nursery from 7:30am to 5pm and still refused - I did a big breastfeed in the car before taking her in and the same on pickup. Nursery offered bottles every day but she never drank more than an ounce and managed on water from sippy cups (just worked out my notice period in the end as it was a nightmare, but that was due to shitty misogynistic senior management claiming that the only way to offer me part time would be 60% timetable and wage still spread over a 5 day week, and taking away my top sets and replacing them with difficult big middle and bottom year 9 sets, not the bottle issue). Her night sleep regressed and she reverse cycled, feeding more at night, which was shit with marking and preparation to do "once the baby's asleep" [hollow laugh]

I was a Sahm with dc2 and never tried to introduce a bottle. Had to go into hospital in an ambulance when he was 6 months - DH bought bottles and formula and he drained two 8oz bottles in succession (then DH read the labels and twigged not to give him a 3rd 8oz bottle immediately as he still seemed to want more)...

I think it may be luck...

Sorry!

There's no trick, it's just luck. Some babies take one early and still go on to refuse. Some never have one until later, but are fine.

I think your 2 week plan should work.

I'm in a bit of a situation now with my 3 mo bf twins. I need to go back to work in 6 weeks (had originally planned on two weeks from now).

I gave or at least offered a bottle of formula to each baby every day from birth so as to avoid bottle refusal down the line. The one will take with a bit of fuss. The other stubbornly refused about a month ago (was never keen) and now screams when she sees a bottle or bib. (We have stopped trying every single day as I have a new nanny and honestly didn't want her to quit at the prospect!) Obviously they won't be weaned when I start work.

So what are we doing? We're moving house! 400m from work, nanny will likely have to wheel her up to me every 2-3 hours unless there is some marvellous breakthrough in the next little while. (There are several other reasons for moving house, not least the fact that I won't need a car, but this is not the least of them!)

I did manage to reintroduce a bottle to DS1 at 4.5mo having let our practice slide, so that can be done too. Although by the time I was back working with him he was eating a bit which eased my mind. Also a mellower character than my passionate DD!