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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Original poster

Baby refusing EBM - help needed!

15 replies

Freddiecat · 02/12/2004 23:31

DD is now nearly 5 months and breastfeeding really well. She is down to 4 feeds a day plus a small amount of puree. She has never taken a single feed of expressed milk. I didn't bother much at first because she was easy to feed and slept through from an early age.

However I have a wedding to go to in March and whilst we're all invited it's 250 miles away and not fair on the kids to drag them along so I'm going alone

I don't want to give up breastfeeding so I need her to be taking milk feeds properly from a bottle or cup by then but without running the risk of her preferring the bottle.

I've tried Avent teats, NUK teats, fast-flowing spout cups and the Tommee Tippee easy-flow cup. She was happy chewing on the latter but didn't get much milk.

What do I do next? I have visions of breastfeeding forever!!!!

OP posts:
ja9 · 03/12/2004 00:10

My friend ordered a special teat from the internet(she had the same problem). It cost about £20. It's especially for breast fed babies who won't take to the bottle. Expensive, but she swears it's worth it. I'm seeing her tomorow and i'll ask her about it and see if i can get you a link.

jabberwocky · 03/12/2004 00:51

This company is in Canada but ds took to these beautifully. Click on "pregnancy and nursing" then "special needs feeding aids"
nipples

WigWamBam · 03/12/2004 09:10

Just a thought, but has it always been you who has tried to give the expressed milk? Because if it has, she may not take it because she knows that the real thing (you) is on offer. My dd would never take ebm from me because she preferred the breast, but would always take it in a bottle from dh - presumably because he didn't smell milky, if you see what I mean. Can you get someone else to try to give the ebm while you are out of the room/house and see if it makes any difference? Apologies if you have already done this, it was just the first thing that sprang to mind.

MariNativityPlay · 03/12/2004 09:31

Freddiecat, have you tried the Playtex system? If not, I'll post a link. All babies are different, dd wouldn't take them, but ds did and it was my lifeline. They are not that easy to find and quite bizarre looking, but do work for lots of b/f babies.

Willowmum · 03/12/2004 09:38

We had similar problems with dd but she had to take a bottle/cup when I went back to work. If she's chewing happily on the cup, you're probably already making progress - my dd used to scream at the sight of a bottle!

I used a free flow cup and poured milk down her throat. After doing that once per day for about 3 or 4 weeks, she suddenly started sucking on the spout and feeding properly. She now has her milk from Avent bottles with a spout and even takes a normal bottle at nursery.

Incidentally though, it was only when she was happily weaning that she did this. I think it's because she previously has only bf (she never took emb, even when very tiny). When she got used to other tastes and taking food from a spoon she seemed to be a bit more open minded about trying new things.

I agree with wwm's suggestion but this didn't work for our dd! Another suggestion I've heard is to sit with your baby on your lap, facing away from you and hold the bottle with your hand cupping her chin. Again, didn't work for us but you have to try everything!

Willowmum · 03/12/2004 09:39

PS dd still bf happily as well!

mears · 03/12/2004 09:56

Freddiecat - if the wedding is in March she will be 8 months by then. That is a long way away in baby terms for development and it is highly likely she will drink from a cup or bottle by then. I would wait for a bit longer before trying again. What you don't want to do is upset her by putting her off altogether. She will definately survive when you go to the wedding. Enjoy.

Original poster
Freddiecat · 03/12/2004 17:15

Thank you! I might try again after Christmas based on this advice. Give her a break for now.

If the cups I have don't work I'll have a look at these special teats.

OP posts:
poppy101 · 03/12/2004 19:57

Apparently if a baby is breast feed they tend to use the tongue and lap more. Offering a cup with a special spout is a good idea, but as the baby will be 8 months, the baby should be on a cup by that age. The baby would probably only want to suck for comfort. You could use the MAM teats and bottles, I use these and easily transfer my baby from teat to breast frequently.

Original poster
Freddiecat · 04/12/2004 22:54

OK when you say cup - you mean a normal cup like an adult would drink from? No spout at all?

OP posts:
xmashampermunker · 04/12/2004 23:20

We had this with DS - I had to get him to take EBM from a bottle before I went back to work when he was six months. We found that it worked best if I fed him the EBM (no break for this mummy!) and as long as the milk was really very warm. Even now, he prefers it hot - body temperature.

HTH - and I'd also suggest waiting - the difference between a five-month-old baby and an eight-month-old baby - incredible! A cup sounds like a good plan too - but make sure it's not one she has to suck too hard from - a free-flowing one works best. I gave DS one when he was six months old and he grabbed it and drank from it like he'd been sneaking downstairs and practising while we were all asleep!!

Enjoy the wedding! xxx

emz31 · 06/12/2004 10:04

i too have this problem - my 5MO DS is a total boob man. I have tried every bottle going and even bought the haberman feeder which apparantly works on 9/10 babies - cost me £20 and DS hated it. he has taken to weaning like a pro and loves taking his water from a cup (will take from the tommy tippee freeflow spouts but prefers it with lid off like a normal cup). he'll also take EBM from cup, but not enought to replace a feed as half of it goes down himself!. Have now ordered a doidy cup which is slanted and helps them drink better so am pinning my hopes on that and have packed away the bottles. I totally sympathise and I too feel like i'll be BF forever. But I guess the older they get the less milk they need and if you're away for a day or so they're not going to starve! (at least that's what i keep telling myself as i too will be attending a wedding alone when DS is 8MO!).
HTH - also if you did want to try the haberman feeder, i'm selling it still in box as only used once for a tenner (see wanted) - your baby may not be quite as stubborn as my little mule!!

emz31 · 06/12/2004 10:06

sorry, for the haberman feeder - don't go to wanted, it's in the for sale bit! - DOH!!

californiagirl · 06/12/2004 17:26

If the baby is going to take a bottle, it won't take long. Forget waiting until after Christmas; wait until February.

DD stopped taking a bottle early on, and when she went to nursery at 6 months, they were unconcerned. Her first day, she didn't take bottles well for them, but nobody was traumatized (she was taking water from a sippy cup by then and I nursed her at lunch time). Her second day she figured out that it was the bottle or nothing, and started taking bottles just fine.

FIL says that DH's younger sister had to be moved to the bottle without warning when her mum went into hospital, and even though she'd never been willing before, it took about 4 hours.
I think all this preparing adds more trauma than it avoids.

zebra · 07/12/2004 19:26

Try an ordinary cup or even a spoon, Freddiecat.
I have a lot more luck getting DS (now 24 weeks, so 5.5 months) to take EBM off a spoon or from a cup, than from a beaker or teat.

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