Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Infant feeding

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

Flip

Original poster

Would be eternally grateful for any tips on getting my bf dd to take a bottle

23 replies

Quicksilver · 19/05/2008 10:47

Hi, my dd is now 13 weeks old and I am bfing.

I have got to the point now where I would like to be able to very occasionally go somewhere by myself, maybe even out for a meal with dh.

However dd will not take a bottle(of EBM). I have tried lots of different teats - NUK, MAM, Tommee Tippee etc but everytime I try she cries like it is the most distressing experience in the world.

What am I doing wrong? Has anyone got any ideas?

OP posts:

isaidno · 19/05/2008 12:12

You could try letting someone else give the bottle. She knows you've got the real deal on tap!

I introduced a bottle at bedtime when DS1 was 6 weeks, but it must have been at least 4 weeks before he would take it from me. I also had to use different position so he wasn't facing my boob. I found sitting on my lap facing out worked best.

MamaChris · 19/05/2008 12:19

We tried lots of times with bottle - dp giving it, me being out the room - but never worked. ds (15 weeks) also won't take a dummy. BUT we have just started trying a doidy cup (google for it) and it's going well. We're using freshly expressed milk (still warm) and he will happily slurp from this in my or dp's arms. We plan to progress onto stored milk as he gets more familiar with it. Bit messy, but we figure that will get better with practice, and it means we have finally found something (other than a nipple) that ds will accept

mmelody · 19/05/2008 13:00

What worked for us is walking round the house with DS facing outwards and thus distracted. He would take a few sucks at a time and we just built it up gradually and made sure we did it every day so it was part of his routine.

Greedygirl · 19/05/2008 13:01

I doubt you are doing anything wrong Quicksilver, baby Greedy loved to chew on the bottle but never got how to actually get any milk out of it. If we tried him with a bottle before he went to bed he became hysterical. TBH we gave up and I resigned myself to not going out for a bit and it was a relief not having to struggle with him anymore but I hope you have more success; have you tried a cup? Try the lid of a bottle first, turn it upsidedown and let him lap the milk up. My DS nearly got the hang of this but I was too lazy to persevere.

lokka · 19/05/2008 13:21

What mmelody said.

I read that on here somewhewre and it worked a treat. Face him outwards so he's looking elsewhere, sing and let him suck away, it was the only way for us. After a couple of days he would accept it normally.

ja9 · 19/05/2008 13:23

We put dd in her bouncy chair in front of the tv, and sat behind her!! even then she would only take an ounce or two in one sitting. eventually we discoved that incrreasing the temperature of the milk helped her to take more. stick with it!

EdieMcredie · 19/05/2008 13:43

This happened to me. We tried EVERYTHING. If you did a search you would find lots of threads started by me about it!! It was incredibly frustrating. In the end we got her to take her milk in a TT cup which she did fine. However I did not like the idea of this for when she starts nursery next month so I came on here and got lots of advice about other cups to try...

...And then lo and behold-we thought we would try again at weekend and she took a bottle!!!!

She is 8 months and started to refuse at around 3 months...

mackie1976 · 19/05/2008 14:33

some advice would be great pls,my daughter is 20 months old,and i'm still breastfeeding,but i think now is the time to get her off and on to the bottle,and 8 hours sleep would be great as never had this as she is now still waking twice in the night for breastfeeding,i have spoken to my health visitor about this as she will not drink normal full fat milk from a bottle or a cup,and when it comes to dinner and tea times she will pick at the food and then come crying to me for breast milk,and i have been told to leave her to cry as if she is hungry and thirsty she will eat and drink what she has got,which i think is abit harsh as she gets in a right state,can anyone pls give me any advice or tips on this

Original poster

Quicksilver · 19/05/2008 14:40

Thanks for all the replies. I will get dh to try to walk around giving her the bottle tonight.
It's good to know other people have had the same problem. It looks like perseverence is the answer.

Mackie I hope you get some advice! 20 months is a long time. I am hoping to avoid your predicament.

OP posts:

EdieMcredie · 19/05/2008 15:23

QuickSilver-Most people who breastfeed experience this problem. If nothing else works then I would def try a TT cup-or a big syringe can be helpful.

Original poster

Quicksilver · 19/05/2008 16:15

Thanks EdieMacredie, when you say a TT cup I assume you mean Tommee Tippee?
A syringe is a good idea, although not very soothing for her.

OP posts:

Caz10 · 19/05/2008 16:21

oooh well done ediemcredie! what type of bottle did she take, and how did she take it? who from i mean? and position? in other words, heeeeeeeeelp!

23wk dd here in the same position! i have actually just delayed my return to work as i am freaking out over the thought of her starving, which i know logically she won't, but the thought of being at work all day and her crying with hunger just breaks my heart!

we are now at the stage where she will drink some from a doidy cup, but not much, and more goes down her top, so i'd really like to crack the bottle thing

EdieMcredie · 19/05/2008 18:36

Caz10-I feel for you-lots of people said to me'she won't starve' 'she will have it if she is hungry enough' etc etc. Tahnkfully at that time I didn't need to return to work, I just wanted to be able to have the odd night out for baby free shopping trip!

I think for us what worked was getting to the stage where she was old enough to play with it and plus because she had been drinking out of the cup (and yes QS that is Tommee Tippee), we were far more laid back. I said to DP 'lets just let her play with the bottle' (again, a Tommee Tippee) and she played with it. Then chewed on it. Then sucked it. Then before we knew it, the milk was gone!!!

So im afraid waiting worked for us, but you can't afford the luxury of time!!

Will post later as now off out...

EdieMcredie · 19/05/2008 18:37

Just read back and in my haste, some of my post doesn't make sense!! I meant 'the odd night out or baby free shopping trip'!!

Caz10 · 19/05/2008 19:26

Thanks!

Any further hints very welcome!

And sorry quicksilver for the hijack, but I think we are after the same advice anyway!

ChairmumMiaow · 19/05/2008 19:41

We're working on this - DS took a bottle till about a month ago then started refusing. We tried some different cups and he likes his trainer cup.

We're now trying it regularly so that I can feel confident going out and not come back after an hour like a couple of weeks ago! We started tonight - DH gave him about 1.5oz while I expressed, and we had no arguments.

I think the trick is todo it before they would normally get too hungry, while they are calm, even if it means pre-empting them. Hopefully this will keep working andif it does I can update this with our tips

EdieMcredie · 19/05/2008 21:08

Is the problem the actual receptacle or the milk Caz??

Caz10 · 19/05/2008 21:42

Not sure actually! I did think about trying formula in a bottle but would be upset if she would take that but not EBM...although it would be better than her taking nothing!

With the doidy cup she sort of looks surprised every time a little bit of milk goes in, but she does swallow, then goes back for more. But I'd say we've managed to get 0.5oz into her with a cup, probably less, and certainly not enough to substitute for a feed! Dh is quite happy to sit and persevere with a cup, but I'm conscious that it will often be MIL who takes her, and i can't see her sitting for hours on end dripping EBM into her!

With the bottle she chews on the nipple and again seems to quite like it when she gets a little bit of milk - but she has totally lost the instinct/ability/whatever it is to suck on the bottle teat.

After a while with either she just gets upset and I end up bf-ing her.

How old is your LO CM, and what is a trainer cup?

Greedygirl · 19/05/2008 21:50

Ikwym Caz, think DS would have got the hang of cups with some more effort on my part but it would have been my MIL giving him the milk and the combination of someone different and feeding from a cup - it just wasn't going to happen!

EdieMcredie · 19/05/2008 21:53

No I would say persevere with the EBM. My DD didn't even get that far when she started refusing-she wouldn't even let it in her mouth!! Can you just give it to her to hold-will she hold it? Can't remember what they can and can't do at that age!! (that's bad-twas only a couple of months ago)

forkhandles · 19/05/2008 22:01

I, and a couple of friends, had great success with this Playtex bottle/teat. The teat is really good as it has a different action to most and is meant to be more 'nipple like'! Definitely need to persevere with it and also agree with feeding them facing outwards, I found DD1 like to look out of the kitchen window or in the mirror! Good luck, you'll get there in the end

Original poster

Quicksilver · 20/05/2008 10:17

I am going to try tonight with a TT teat. My dd doesn't chew on the teat at all. I can't really even get the teat in her mouth as her tongue is in the way!

What a farce! I hope it works out for you Caz10. I wouldn't fancy the idea of going back to work knowing she will be upset either.

I don't go back until October so I'll have to have it sorted by then.

OP posts:

ChairmumMiaow · 20/05/2008 10:37

Caz - a trainer cup is a cup with a rubber spout. DS chomps on it and the hole is big enough that the milk comes out. Tommee Tippee do a similar one but we have a cheapy asda one.

www.tommeetippee.co.uk/product/easiflow_bottle_to_cup_trainer_3_months_/

DS is 4 months today :-) He stopped taking his bottle about a month ago

Good Luck!

Flip