When did your EBF LO take a bottle?

[catg83]

I am due to have baby number 2 in 2 weeks.

Baby 1 never took a bottle. We tried him starting about 8 weeks with a variety of bottles, formula and pumped breast milk.
I was wondering if anyone had a success stories with EBF babies taking a bottle? How old was your LO when they successfully took a bottle?

I know it isn't be all end all if he won't take a bottle but I think it might make life easier with a 3 year old tearing around too!

Mine is 3 weeks and I plan to start offering the occasional bottle of expressed milk in another week or so. Who knows if he’ll take it, but he’s pretty laid back so I’m hoping so. My first was EBF for 6 weeks and then had to start offering bottles as I had to stop bf, and she took them without a fuss.

Due to tongue tie my lo had bottles after every bf from 3days till 2weeks then one a day till about 2.5mo then refused entirely and never had one again. Had to teach him to use a cup at 6mo so I could work.

I strongly believe it doesn’t bake any difference when you introduce it.

Mine was 12 days old, and I was exhausted and in agony from cluster feeding, his dad took him downstairs and gave him a bottle while I slept. Now he switches from bottle to breast quite happily.

I'm expressed and gave the odd bottle from ten days. Was keen not to end up with a bottle refuser. He was fine.

I tried mine on a bottle at about two weeks old/three weeks old of expressed milk. She took to it really well! Then, I got into the swing of breastfeeding and stopped offering her a bottle out of ease for myself. I wish that I had kept up with it now, as she is 4 months old and is very reluctant that drink from a bottle for very long.

The advice that I got from the HV was the earlier, the better! So, I would say just try and be persistent... to an extent. Good luck!

DC1 never took a bottle because we started too late, but royals drink from a zippy cup from 6 months. DC2, I had planned like you to introduce one early. What actually happened was I was so busy all the time that I never actually managed to pump and sterilise bottles, I just fed on demand in the sling whilst playing with DC1. DC2 now 8 months and bottles still not seen the light of day. Sorry, this may not be the sort of story you were looking for!

Haha! But would drink from a sippy cup. I am not Kate Middleton. Sorry to disappoint.

Ds was 5 weeks prem, we started trying a bottle from 6 weeks as I had to go back to work @10 weeks - . We used the MAM bottles and as long as dh gave him it when I was out of the room he was fine!!
He only had 1 a day until he was 9 months when I stopped bf.

Ds wouldn't have a bottle until he was 10 months. I didn't try him on a bottle until he was 8 weeks.

We successfully started dd on a bottle at 3 weeks because I was determined that I wasn't going to have another bottle refuser! I was recommended Minbie bottles which seem to be more like breastfeeding than other types of bottles I've tried.

Had her first bottle at 6 weeks and would happily go between both since then. We used a munchkin latch.

5 weeks. The 'nipple confusion' believers said to start at 4 weeks and the 'must establish bf' believers said 6, so I split the difference.

We tried for a bottle of expressed milk 1 feed a day but probably managed every other (because she'd go from 0-starving and it was so much easier to just bf her) I expressed while DH fed so didn't actually save me any effort!

She took bottles fine, but not from me until she was much older, she knew I was hiding the real deal 😂

Baby had first bottle of breastmilk at 2 weeks. No nipple confusion or anything and she has at least 1 bottle every day.

Thank you so much for all your experiences.

Badgr- yeah. Have a feeling that may be what happens. A lot of one handed feeding. I couldn't work out feeding in a sling last time.

I was at the Baby and Toddler show in Manchester yesterday and had a long chat with one of the reps from MAM about bottle feeding a breastfed baby. Obviously trying to flog her products but some great info about when to express and how to sterilise. I have no idea about anything bottle related!

Day one. DS2 was too sleepy and unwell to have a real go at the boob on day 1 so I hand expressed colostrum and topped up with formula until my milk came in on day 3. He's had fairly regular bottles of EBM since then in addition to being a total boob monster in general.