DS 24 weeks started at childminders, will only take 3oz from a bottle & is v grumpy. Any ideas?

[Anonymousse]

DS was EBF until he started at the childminders last week. He's on a NUK bottle with Cow & Gate milk. He will take the bottle if hungry or just before a nap but only 3 oz max. This doesn't keep him going very long and he's being very unsettled. He is still feeding from me in the morning, evening & 11pm.

We have tried changing to SMA, didn't make any difference. Today I have given her 7 oz expressed milk to try. I do not express easily though!! I was thinking of hiring a Medela pump, would this work better than a manual one?

Any other ideas as to how to get him to take more milk please? He's starting solids but really not on any good quantity yet so we can't shovel him full of milky solids

he is nearly 6 months and in a few weeks I would imagine he would have adjusted to not having much milk in the day. There will probably be a few extra night feeds for you or you try feeding at say 6am 8am and same in evening.

For bottle refusers, 6 months is considered the time that they last in the day if returning to work with a few weeks adjustment. Some babies go 12 hours without feeding at night, so it's just a case of moving when they have that long period of no milk.

3oz sounds about right for an ebf baby - they don't have the large stomach capacity of a bottle fed baby so don't take much in one go.

You could also try an open cup or free flow beaker or a cup and a straw to see if they appeal more than a bottle.

My DD has been with a childminder from 6.5 months and has never taken more than 3oz either. In fact, it's usually 1oz twice in 8 hours plus a small amount of solids (blw). I just let her her catch up on bf in the evening and overnight.

The expressed milk may be more popular but it may be a case of little and often. You could try different bottles - the Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature ones are supposed to be the closest 'feel' to a breast. You could also give the CM a top that you've worn for a couple of nights or something so the smell when he's feeding is familiar (smell is crucially important for babies).

Yes, the Medela electric pumps can be a lot more effective than manual expressing, I've found. The Swing was very good.

He's probably unsettled because of starting with the CM, as well - not just because of feeding. It's only been going a week - see how you and he are doing in a couple of weeks.

Oh yes, definitely get an electric pump. If your baby only has one side per feed, then you can pump the other at the same time as he feeds - you will prob get more that way. OTOH your baby may be far too nosy about the pump to feed effectively :)

The other thing to try maybe is a faster flowing teat on the bottle. Breasts can deliver milk surprisingly quickly and it may just be that your DS would prefer speedier delivery :)