How can I get baby to accept ocassional bottle of neocate?

[TinyDiamond]

Hi,
Dd is 7.5 months, breastfed but highly intolerant to dairy and soy so I have been on exclusion diet since last year.
The time has come for me to return to work soon and have had neocate prescribed to fill in the gaps when I'm not there. She takes a bottle no problem, drinks expressed milk or oat milk sometimes but never more than a couple of ounces. Drinks water from a cup.

Her weight gain has dropped off very slightly and I'm finding it really hard to get enough calories into her if I'm not around to breastfeed her.
How can I get her to take the formula? Do people really mix nesquick in? Really not keen on this as I was a v hyperactive child and I feel like she's going the same way as she's so sensitive to foods.
If she really won't take it is fortified oat milk a viable option in the day whilst I'm at work if I carry on b feeding her 3x per day?
She is 32 weeks old currently.

Would also like to add I have tried using the neocate in foods already. Tried porridge and also hiding it in fruit purees. She looked at me utterly disgusted and screamed. Usually good at accepting string tastes but v stubborn on this one.
Dp and my mum have also tried giving her the bottle.

This probably isn't the answer you want to hear but I had the same problems with DS, he never took a bottle after I returned to work. He just switched his feed pattern round and fed about 3/4 times a night.... I was pretty exhausted but his weight never dipped, he ate more solids with our childminder and caught up on his breastfeeding later. I fed him until he was 2 when DD arrived.

She was also the same but not for allergy reasons, she just hated bottles and did the same thing as ds. I was catatonic for a few years but we've all survived the experience!

That's what she does currently if I'm away and am away from her in the day. Well, infact that's what she does already even when I am with her. She will only feed between 10 and 3 if we are at home and I take her into a dark room. Far too distracted to feed out and about. So maybe I just need to accept the fact that she will just do night feeds instead. Hmmm was hoping her sleep would get better soon. Oh well

I tried this at 8 months and couldn't do it. Admittedly, I didn't try very hard - I was only thinking of using it in cooking (still breastfeeding) but wanted DS to get used to the taste.

I was talking to someone the other day who managed it - even though it was introduced at 8 months. But, she said, she had to offer it mixed with her milk at every single feed, without fail, for a whole month.

Not sure if that's any help - sorry.

We had to introduce it very gradually starting with 1oz mixed with 6oz of 'usual' milk (I wasn't breastfeeding by this point) and very slowly increasing the amount of Neocate while reducing the 'normal' milk. It did take quite a while because it really does taste vile but DS is now 4.5 and still has it(1 sachet on his breakfast and the other as a drink before bed).

I introduced nutramigen to ds at 11mos when it was obvious it was either that or bf long term which I didn't want to do. Until then he had never taken a bottle or formula. Initially I tried what ffmum did (on her advice as I was at a loss ). But stubborn ds was having none of it didn't like the bottle or the mix. So I mixed it with crusha, not much just enough to sweeten it and I reduced it quite quickly so within 2 weeks he was drinking it straight and loves it now on everything, he's 17mos.
He still didn't sleep through although he didn't need feeding at night but that is a whole other thread!

Another vote for nesquick here. I introduced Nutramigen to DD1 at 7 months. I tried mixing with EBM - 7oz EBM to 1oz Nutramigen. It would flatly be refused and I just wasted precious BM. Strawberry nesquick was recommended by a mum on here (thank you again). I started reducing the quantity of nesquick after a week. By two weeks she was on straight Nutramigen. She loves the stuff now (nearly 3) and as a "treat" she licks the tin out. We certainly know how to have fun in our house..

I know people who have had success with vanilla extract too if you want to try something more "natural". Good luck.

I never did manage to get DS2 to take Nutramagen apart from on his cereal and in recipes.

I just BF before and after work and he drank water whilst with the CM. Then at 12 months he started having soya milk, which he still has now. Although I also BF till he was 20 months as well.

My DD went onto neocate at 8mths (also dairy/soya intolerant) and I was prepared for a battle but tbh she really liked it

I would second/third the nesquik idea (this was what was suggested to me by the dietician if I struggled to get DD on it).

Also maybe giving her a bottle of it when she is sleepy and less likely to keep up a stink

DD went through various phases of going off it for a few wks then taking it again and what did help was her having it in the buggy whilst out and about so she was busy looking at everything and just sucking slowly iyswim (although she was nearer a yr old when I did this).

She is now 4 and has only been off neocate for a couple of months as she finally tolerates lacto free milk

Also maybe look at changing the teats on the bottles as it can be quite thick, to a teat where she does not have to suck very hard...

Thanks for responses. She already has fast flow teats on the bottles so I do t think that's it. She will accept a bottle every now and again and drinks water happily from one although now I try and use a cup for water. It's just the substance IN the bottle she won't go for- don't blame her. It smells like mouldy potato starch and copydex. Yeugh.
Good news though, I managed to hide 3 whole scoops in her dinner. It was savoury-reckon this is easier than going sweet?
Anyway, this may be a stupid question but bear with me as I've never used formula before.
As I have her three scoops of the powder in something does that mean I should've got her to drink 3 oz of water to balance it out? She had a bit but not 3 oz worth though. She has breast fed 3 times since so should it matter?
Also, she has horrific wind now-the neocate is the only new thing she's had. Could it be possible that upsets her too? thought it was allergy/ intolerance proof? Minefield

Bump

The dietician told me that babies bitter taste buds develop around 6 months - that's when my little one started to refuse nutramigen in her food (baby rice/cereeal). Is it worth trying another formula? None of them will taste the same as b'milk, which is very sweet, but I would absolutely NOT use Oat milk - it's not considered suitable for children under two. Other milks (eg Rice) are not suitable either. Alpro's Junior version of soya milk used to say it was suitable from six months but you haven't said whether your little one can tolerate that. It now says from 12 months - my little one (older now) seems to enjoy it. Technically your little one should be ok for soya from 6 months I believe. I have seen soya formula in the supermarkets, so if soya is fine, maybe you could try it?