Business trip abroad and baby not taking bottle -please help!

[Vinividivino]

I am due back to work next month and one of the first things I have to do is go abroad on a 5 day business trip. I have a 5.5month old DD who has been ebf since birth and now won't take a bottle, whatever my DH and I try to do. We have tried everything, me leaving the house while he gives her the bottle so she can't smell me, making sure she's really hungry (although I can't leave her too long - its heartbreaking to hear her), warming the milk to different temperatures, etc etc.

We will keep trying for the next couple of weeks but then I think I will have to alert my company to fact I'm not going to be able to go on the trip. I am expecting a bad reaction to this, the trip is important. Has anyone had a similar situation to this and how did you handle it with work? I am thinking of asking the doctor to write me a covering note explaining that my baby needs breast milk and that therefore I can't travel - is that a rubbish idea?

Thanks very much in advance.

try a cup in smaller amounts - it doesn't need to be drunk all at once
I'm sure she won't starve

My DD who was primarily breast fed started refusing a bottle at about 3 months. We faffed about for a month trying different things but in the end made the decision that on a day when we were both around and no other plans that it was going to be bottle or nothing. I decided that the last feed I would give her would be about 4am (in the end it was 10 pm as she slept through that night) and she held out til midday (without much fuss). Then she took the bottle and continued taking it for the rest of the day (and thereafter when required).

Vini, is your Mum around to help? The reason I ask is that ds3 was exactly like your dd and in the end he took loads of bottles but only from my Mum when I went on a day trip. I think my Mum looks and sounds a bit like me.

Are you trying her with breastmilk or formula?

I also found that he took Playtex bottles with the soft latex teat. Wouldn't take a silicone teat at all.

I had the same issue when I wanted to return to work and we tried everything you tried.

Then an old midwife told me to buy the cheap brown latex teats at the chemist - worked a dream.

I'd just managed to train him to go without milk between 8 and 3 and take water from a cup and food from a spoon - he was only 4 and half months at the time but we weaned at 4 months in those days.

x'd with chipmonkey - also, wash and sterilise the teats a few times to get them even softer and rub some breast milk on them before use.

these bottles with these liners and these teats and before that we had tried loads of different types!

I didn't even go that fancy chip - I just used normal bottles and these:

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/181120180764?device=c&adtype=pla&crdt=0&ff3=1&ff11=ICEP3.0.0&ff12=67&ff13=80&ff14=83&ff19=0

basically anything that the local chemist stocked.

we previously tried all the fancy stuff, even got some bottles sent from the states!

Did you order the Adiri Breastbottle?

lol - no idea anymore chip - it was for No2 son and he is 12 next week :o

All 5 foot 5 and 9 stone of him. Clearly the trauma of having to be weaned so I could get back to work has adversely affected his growth :o

just googled and no, it wasn't that!

Yy to the cheap bottles - the long thin ones with a yellow coloured teat worked for us too. I did read on Kelly mom that bf babies like to freed themselves sometimes and won't necessarily allow themselves to be fed like a ff baby. Dd2 will hold her own bottle and chew the teat - she just chewed initially but after a whole she drank. She has ebm at nursery now and they manage to feed it to her

Thanks very much everyone. We will certainly try these bottles. And if that doesn't work then Jkkipu's suggestion of the cup is a good one.

chipmonkey Yes, my mum is due to come and help out while I am away so, based on your suggestion, I might as her to come over before so we can try it out before I go.

I went to a spa while my Mum fed ds3!

at 5.5 months DS figured out how to use a straw (and at nearly 3 he still can't use a sippy cup...)

My DD2 wouldn't take a bottle. I went away for the weekend when she was just about 7 months old, she had expressed breastmilk from a tommee tippee cup, & whatever solids she ate. She was fine.

Have you tried a cup?

We've just endured something similar with DS who decided to start refusing EBM bottles at 12 weeks old, having previously taken them every couple of days from 6 weeks old. In the end my DP rearranged his work so he could start later for a week and we had a week of DS having his first feed each morning from DP. He took DS downstairs each morning before he had woken so he hadn't seen me at all and was properly hungry and tried every possible way to get him to feed.
In the end it worked after doing it every day for 9 days - the biggest thing we worked out was that he takes the bottle best when we stop trying to fool him by making the 'experience' like a breastfeed. He also likes to feed himself the bottle with minimal help and not be held in a BF type position.
At 16 weeks old his favourite bottle position now is sitting in the bouncy chair, watching TV, with his dad sat at his side helping him to hold the bottle! We have also had some success using a sippy cup instead of a bottle, and sitting DS in his highchair with the seat reclined.

HTH