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Behaviour/development

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Original poster

Bf and biting - help!

9 replies

Annie456 · 06/04/2012 22:44

DS is 7 months and has 5 teeth. Most feeds are now involving some pretty severe biting. I'm vaguely following Gina with weaning times etc but I'm wondering if he's just not hungry and more prone to biting?? Any tips much appreciated or I fear this may be the end of the BF.....

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

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AKMD · 06/04/2012 22:53

I went through this with DS and in the end I resorted to putting him down every time he bit me. He hated it and it only took a day or so for him to get the message. As soon as he bit I unlatched him, said 'No' very firmly and put him down on the floor/cot/carseat/pushchair. He screamed blue murder but we finally stopped BFing at 16 months so it was worth it :)

NotAnOstrich · 06/04/2012 22:53

Have you tried stopping / breaking the latch when biting begins? When my DS did this I stopped him feeding then said a very firm "NO! You do not bite mummy." The shock of the stern voice during a relaxing feed got him to stop.

I think they more often try biting out of curiosity more than a link to weaning and chewing food. They are definitely able to feed without biting even with loads of teeth : DD at 18 months still bf and has LOTS of teeth! Good luck, I know it can be painful.

LargeLatte · 07/04/2012 22:07

Just wanted to back up what the others had said. I used to break the latch and just swivel baby out so he was lying face up on my lap and could see my face (and what he was missing out on), and just said no and shook my head. Only had to do it a couple of times with ds1 and once with ds1. You just want him to get the message that biting Mummy interupts feeding time. Good luck.

spammertime · 07/04/2012 22:15

I have found that I actually get a better response by pushing them on rather than breaking their latch... pushing them on (fairly!) gently means they need to pull off themselves rather than me doing it which has resulted in them digging teeth in deeper. It does pass anyway, not that it makes it any better when they're going through a bitey stage.

QuickQuickSloe · 07/04/2012 22:25

I reacted instinctively on the first bite by squealing and then breaking his latch. DS (7.5 mths) was most put out! I was then worried I would have a nursing strike on my hands but he was fine. The second bite was preceded by a grin then a nip*. I squealed again and stopped the feed for ten minutes and he hasn't bitten me since.

*no pun intended [bugrin]

sugarandspite · 07/04/2012 22:49

I found my DD started biting at about 9 months when she was cutting her top front teeth. She really only ever bit towards the end of a feed when she was teething so I used to pay really close attention (no MNing!) while feeding and could usually tell when she was just about to bite and break the latch then.

Similarly to previous posters, I would just say no, put her in her cot and leave the room for a count of 60. Then back in and resume the feed on the other side.

There was no immediate improvement but at least I felt like I was doing something and after a few weeks she grew out of it once her teeth were properly through.

Good luck OP, it does hurt like a bastard!!

startail · 08/04/2012 00:28

I found No! And putting DD2 on the floor with no fuss and no eye contact, for no more than a minute or so worked.
The trick seemed to be to remove cuddle and food for long enough she noticed, but pick her up again before she cried.

She learnt very quickly not to bite deliberately when feeding.

She would still bite, as a reflex, to hold on as she fell asleep. I learnt to concentrate and slip a finger in the corner of her mouth the second I felt her relax.

Might take a couple of tries, but with practice you can remove the baby happily snoozing away.

Original poster

Annie456 · 08/04/2012 10:50

Thanks all!
I've tried "no" and have instinctively screamed out a few times but when I take him off he doesn't seem too upset which makes me wonder whether he's actually hungry or whether I'm giving him too many solids so he doesn't want as much milk?

He's the same with a bottle, he just chews it and doesn't want to drink it so sometimes he goes to sleep without a bottle and I end up having to feed him around midnight when he wakes up hungry....

His top front tooth came through this week so it might improve but I do think he's testing things out and playing a little....

OP posts:

Mich100 · 08/04/2012 10:58

My DS is 6 months and has no teeth , but he managed to almost yank my nipple off last night. He got really upset when I yelled out, but after a minute or two he carried on. I'm dreading when he has teeth . I read somewhere, not to yell out if they bite down. Yeah right! Anyone who writes that clearly has never had it happen to them.

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