Got to move from breast to formula ..... help! how do I do it?

[rookiemum2]

First time I've written in the talk section! Have so far been an avid reader! My DS starts nursery next week - 2 days a week. So far he has only been breastfed but happily uses bottle for water. He is 9 months. I would like 2 of his feeds a day to move on to using formula (expressing that much is just not an option). I have tried, his dad has tried, his prospective nursery carer has tried, but so far he is just not interested in drinking formula. Any tips?

CAn you mix & match - some of your milk & some formula in the same bottle, say over a weekend to give you time - and gradually lessen the amount of your milk?
What formula are you using?

Could try that, tend to struggle to get him to take milk from a bottle. Hoping to use Babynat organic goat milk (he's had goats/cows and rice milk in porridge & cooking so far) so should be used to the taste with his solids.

Or, could you add milk gradually to the water that he already drinks? Obviously at first this isn't going to replace a feed!

The size/sort of teat you use might be an issue for him too. MAM teats are fairly 'nipple' like and babies have to chomp on the smaller size ones like they do on a breast to get the milk out (rather than it just pouring down the back of his throat). A size 1 or 2 might be OK for him. Hope it works out for you!

Rookiemum - my DD started nursery when she was 1. She never took to bottles, so she drank nothing (apart from water) at nursery. This was 3 days a week, 9 to 3. She made up for it when we were together at home and during the night. My milk supply hasn't decreased, or if it has it might have done due to her eating other stuff too, not necesarilly to the changing pattern of breastfeeding. She's now 15 months and no longer in nursery and is still breastfeeding. I though I should give you another idea, although I realise a 9 month old is much younger than a 12 month old and she might need more milk than my DD did. Good luck.

If you can still feed him in the morning and teatime/evening he may not need an additional milk drink during the day anyway, as long as he'll drink water instead, so try not to stress too much about him taking milk from a bottle.

wow so many quick responses - thanks everyone so far ..... will try a bit of watered down formula. Teats Avent 2 were recommended to me by someone else, is MAM a make I should be familiar with. Definitely take your points about not worrying he may not need it ... just a little concerned because he could do with gaining some weight and formula seems like a good way of doing it in addition to the deep fried Mars Bars (kidding obviously!)

Rookiemum- MAM teats are pretty widely available - Mothercare, Boots etc

rm, my chap was the same. Turns out he hated the taste. Ready made formula is more palitable and would drink this no problem he just refused powdered milk.

I have the same problem my ds is my 2nd child my first child drank from the bottle no problem but my ds will only take breast milk from the bottle with some encouragement but refuses to drink anything else from the bottle. I can only express small amounts so this is not the answer longterm when I do go back to work. I've tried water, mixed breast with formula, I've got the MAM teats and Tommee Tippee 'closer to nature' bottles/teats, nothing seems to work. I think it's the taste DS doesn't like because even the tiniest amount of formula mixed with breast milk puts DS off! Although the one and only time I got DS to drink formula from the bottle it was a ready made carton, so I went out and bought the powdered version to this milk and he wouldn't touch it, so chapsmum I think you may be right! Might try some more ready-made see what happens.

Rookiemum2 the MAM ULTIvent teats will fit in your avent bottle.

Ready made is a lot nicer tasting than powdered milk.

Have you tried a spout like the avent magic spout - white one for 3m olds, it is easier to suck from thanthe green 6m one? Agian they would fit your exsisting avent bottles?

What about a doidy cup or a steady cup for milk?