Thoughts on 4 1/2yo still on 2 bottles a day?

[velcrobott]

This isn't about me.... but a relative who has her 4 1/2 yo and nearly 2 yo both on bottles for breakfast and before bed time (I mean Avent bottle with milk in it - all 8 oz). This is not a cup!
This is totally a routine. The reason is that the 4 1/2 yo like to have his bottle with his brother....
Am I the only one who thinks this is "weird".... my HV told me she thinks it is "absue" .... I thought it was a strong word but she argued that if the child is "normal" (and he is) than she should help him develop and not keep him in his "baby" state.
Is anyone out there - share their thoughts? Maybe you've done it like that too and can help me understand?
Thank you

Well I wouldn't do it, but if your HV thinks this is abuse methinks she doesn't get around enough!

I think labelling things like this as abuse, detracts from the very real problems of child abuse in our world today

I think "abuse" is totally the wrong word.

I don't think it's necessarily a great idea, but I can't see much harm in it either. If the milk is drunk quickly and teeth are properly looked after, then I don't see much wrong with it. I'm in favour of letting the child decide at their own pace when they're ready to give up certain "baby" habits. It's a similar case to longterm b/feeding really, isn't it?
My friend's ds had a bottle until he was over five, then gave it up no problem, he's fine, in every way.

I wouldn't say it was abuse tbh. My ds1 had a bottle at night until just after his 4th birthday. The only way we could get him out of this particular ritual was to swop it for a new sports bottle. It seems odd giving this little boy a bottle at breakfast but then I have no idea what their family life is like.

Oh how ridiculous, we really are getting in to a nanny state if letting a child keep his bottle is child abuse. This HV needs to get into the real world and stop attaching dramatic labels to what is fairly common pre school behavior. Our eldest hung onto his bottle in the evenings until he started school. Probably because his little brother had one. It was his only comforter, we have never had dummies. I decided it wasnt worth the fuss to forcibly remove it. He promptly gave it up when he decided that it was for babies. He is a happy outgoing well adjusted boy. Doesnt look like a victim of abuse to me!

So what would the HV have said if she was bfing the 4.5y old rather than giving him a bottle? If extended BF is ok then surely extended bottlefeeding is ok today?

Hey coppertop we now have sports bottles too. They dont spill and I can hide their vanilla eye Q (horrible stuff) in the milk and they dont even notice!

It is true that this 4 1/2yo is definitely not very "advanced" for his age in other ways, though he is probably quite intelligent.
I am glad to hear she is not the only one bottlefeeding a 4 1/2yo....

There is a difference between bf and bottlefeeding at age 4 though in that you're supposed to get babies off bottles at around 1 year old - it's to do with their teeth although I don't know if it's the decay aspect or whether it might be the teat maybe stopping the teeth from growing straight. Might be OK as long as you brush the teeth after the bottle but tbh I don't know many parents that do that.