Bf baby no longer taking bottle

[Bouncingturtle]

I think I have a couple of issues here. Ds has been having a bottle of EBM on a night time in a TT Closer to Nature bottle. He's been taking it fine since he was 3 weeks old (he is now 7.5 weeks old). The last 3 nights he has really struggled to take from the bottle, DH thought it might be the slow flow teat so bought the next size up but he still won't take. DH says he is not sucking on it problem.
He is feeding from me no problem, and seems hungry enough - he is currently feeding every couple of hours, though from 3am to about 7am has been very unsettled the past 3 nights.
He does have a cold, he has been very snotty, so could this be why he is having trouble with the bottle? Any suggestions gratefully received, am rather knackered due to ds not sleeping well in the early morning, plus the frequent feeding. He did drop to 3+ hourly feeds middle of last week but has gone back to 1.5-2 hour feeding during the night!
He tends to cluster feed from late afternoon to early evening as well.

colds and snotty noses throw everything out ime- he'll probably get back into it once he can breathe more easily

hi bouncing - it's the same here too! dd has a snotty nose, struggling to BF so trying give her some bottle feeds - she's 10 wks and has taken a bottle (same kind) quite happily since about 5wks. Now she's just refusing/strugling. aaarg.

saline nose drops

also Snufflebabe / Baby Olbas etc

Yes got the saline drops.
Shall get some snufflebabe too.
Thanks, you've put my mind at ease, hope the poor little love gets over his cold soon - and yours Caz!

snufflebabe etc say from 3 months..

got the drops too, aren't they nasty?! dd chokes and coughs it's horrible

Defo think it's to do with the cold. He'll wake up more often because he feels rubbish, and the best way he knows how to feel better is to have a feed with his mum - not a rubber teat.

I hope he feels better soon.

I took the 3m advice with a pinch of salt - at 11wks I used it smeared on a tissue next to the moses basket rather than on her chest.

tbh if I or dh had a cold and had an Olbasy hankie the other side of the room it would have been stronger...

Hi BT
Poor you, you are having a tough time aren't you? But please don't despair - I don't think you are doing anything wrong, it just sounds like you have a very hungry baby! And he's still very young, everything will sort itself out in time.
With the bottle, if you find he still won't take it when he is over his cold, try a different teat. With dd1, we found she refused the bottle at 10 weeks and we really struggled to get her to take it. Finally we hit upon the MAM teat, which was a saviour. Apparently they like the silky feel of it (or something)?
Anyway if it is any compensation I am also knackered at the moment cos dd2 been up since 5am; sometimes she goes back to sleep but this morning she saw me peering into her moses basket and started smiling at me and that was it.....

We have been using baby Olbas (on a tissue close to her moses basket at night) since she was about 5 or 6 weeks old I don't think we have done any long term damage....

glad to hear it re the olbas etc, my instinct had been to do that with a hanky. good luck bt!
someone also suggsted an aspirator aka bogie sucker! but dd has no visible snot, all congested up inside her head. apparently they are fab though, might be worth a try bt?

We tried the aspirator, was totally useless!

once when dd was really bad I just held her up and sucked it out myself

grim but very effective

eeeeuuurgh - but well done!! that must get you a super mummy medal or something!!
it is heading that way here tbh!

DH did it to ds, and declared it totally disgusting.
Now I try and worry it out, by pressing gently on the side of his nose, and when there a little bit hanging out, pull it out!