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Infant feeding

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

Original poster

Help, Back to work in a week and dd will not drink from a bottle

25 replies

beckynbump · 07/06/2008 18:10

I am due to start work in a week and have been trying to get dd to drink from a bottle since she was 8 weeks (now 15 wks). BF easily from birth and now we have screams when I try a bottle.Tried my milk, formula, tomy tippee just like breast teats and even a cup but no joy. Only time she will drink from bottle is if ~I wake her to feed in the night and she is basically still asleep.

What do I do.......

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motherhurdicure · 07/06/2008 18:18

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Original poster
beckynbump · 07/06/2008 18:24

My husband has tried feeding her but he also failed. Which feeder cups did you use?

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motherhurdicure · 07/06/2008 19:02

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Mammamoo · 07/06/2008 23:08

I went back to work about a month ago and the nursery seem to be ok with getting ds to take a bottle - I hadn't tried him with a bottle since we started him on solids around 5.5-6 months so we were all out of practice with it... also it hadn't even occurred to me but we had the wrong teats for his bottles, one of the ladies at nursery suggested getting the number 3 ones (tommee tippee too) - i know it sounds daft but just in case you are as dozy as me could be something to consider!

Caz10 · 08/06/2008 12:36

we've been trying for WEEKS with no success, although dd is older and can take little sips from a cup, but not enough for a feed. this week she's finally taken some from the mothercare bottles with the kind of dotted teats (having rejected TT, mam and nuk)
also dh warmed the milk pretty hot, and left the teat to heat up in the warm water too

good luck, it is very stressful!

dontknowwhattodoforbest · 08/06/2008 12:38

The only way I got both my DD's to take milk from a bottle was to sit them in the car seat - they were relaxed and could not smell my milk. Takes patience but if you do it a few times a day, they will start to take it. Good luck!

BouncingTurtle · 08/06/2008 18:46

Were you in the room when your dh tried to feed her?
My ds will not drink from a bottle unless i am out of the house! And I have to heave been gone at least an hour.
Can you try that, even if it means going to your next door neighbour? Sounds daft but if he knows no boobie milk is coming and he is hungry he will have some ebm.

Quicksilver · 08/06/2008 19:51

I have been trying for weeks as well. Had a slight break through last night.

I started bfing dd (16wks) as usual, then as she started to get sleepy I gently moved her off my breast and put the bottle in her mouth without moving her position at all, and keeping her cheek on my breast.
She didn't cry which is a first and even drank about 3oz.
Everyone says that perserverence is the key.

Failing that it only another 11 weeks until your dd can be weaned so could you put off going back to work for a little while?

NormaStanleyFletcher · 08/06/2008 19:54

DD would never take a bottle, until we tried NUK ones. She only did that a week before nursery, and still wasn't keen.

As soon as she was at nursery she took them fine, but only when she was at nursery. You may well find that once she is in the different environment she will accept that she needs to take the bottles?

Quicksilver · 08/06/2008 19:54

Have just re-read my advice and it is totally useless if you need someone else to give her a bottle!

I meant to add that I am gradually going to change her position until she can take a bottle normally.

JammyQueenOfTheSewers · 08/06/2008 20:01

We tried giving DD bottles in the couple of weeks before I returned to work and she refused them all. She was 7 months then and I only work 2 days a week, so I decided if she missed some milk feeds it wouldn't be the end of the world, so just sent bottles (1 EBM + 1 formula each day) into nursery and hoped for the best. In a different environment she drank them happily.

AbricotsSecs · 08/06/2008 20:14

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Judy1234 · 08/06/2008 20:22

Have you tried getting someone else to feed. I never fed any of my 5 breastfed babies a bottle but they were fed my milk from a bottle by their nanny when I went back to work. In fact I've just realised I've never bottle fed a baby ever in 23 years of motherhood!

AbricotsSecs · 08/06/2008 20:47

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pavlovthecat · 08/06/2008 20:50

Are you able to feed her morning and evening? I did this as DD refused a bottle too. I tried everything, spent a fortune on bottles! Tears and screams and it was horrible. Eventually at about 10 months, she decided she wanted a bottle. And decided she did not want to BF anymore .

She drank a significant amount in the morning, and drank water in the day, and food as being weaned, and as soon as I got home she had another big big feed, and then at bedtime. Sometimes in the night too

Original poster
beckynbump · 09/06/2008 15:28

Thanks for all your advice. I am going to persevere and keep tempting her.Tried it using the car seat this morning and made a bit of a game of it. She happily chewed on the teat but did not suck. I have a faster flow teat on its way so will try that as well.

OP posts:
dontknowwhattodoforbest · 10/06/2008 22:46

You will need to persevere becky, with some babies, it only takes a couple of tries (DD2) but some take a couple of weeks (DD1)!

Good luck! Don't worry, she will get it in the end.

dontknowwhattodoforbest · 10/06/2008 22:48

Oh yes, make sure she is REALLY hungry. After a nap is a good time as they usually are starving. Put her in her chair and just keep giving it to her over a few minutes. Obviously if she gets distressed stop. Then try again at the next feed, then the next...

Original poster
beckynbump · 11/06/2008 10:30

Thanks for all the support. Tried feeding her in the car seat yesterday and after alot of prseverence sh finally decided to drink 2oz from the bottle. Major break through Now my dh has starting worrying that she will go off breast milk and I will stop producing enough for her. Aaargh! After all my efforts. I am sure this little babe likes breast too much to ever give it up. And I am limiting myself to trying her with a bottle just once a day.

Does this child rearing get any simpler or am I just startig out on a lifetime of worrying? I think I know the answer to that one.

OP posts:
dontknowwhattodoforbest · 13/06/2008 09:52

YAH! Well done! That is what happened with my two, they started taking it couple of ozs at a time. Just make sure you do it everyday (couple of times) so she doesn't "forget".

Child rearing gets harder, you will move on to the next phase that's all!

Good luck!

maisiestar · 13/06/2008 10:07

I had a similar experience only he would never take any milk from the bottle (of all types of milk and all types of bottle/cup). The nursery said not to worry, he would probably take to it once they got into a routine of it, but he didn't ever! After 6 weeks of trying we decided that he was never going to get it. Instead I would feed him first thing in the morning and then another couple of feeds before bedtime and in the daytime I'd get mountains of greek yoghurt into him. He would drink water from a cup while at nursery, but never milk.
So don't get too stressed if she doesn't take to it - there are ways around it.
Good luck!

kstevo · 13/06/2008 20:13

I'm going through the same thing at the mo. My ds is almost 5mths and we started weaning three weeks ago. I'm due back at work in 2 1/2 weeks and he really won't take the bottle and I'm at a loss what to do.
Some peolpe mentioned cold turkey - but I haven't really got my head round that. How long do you leave him with out giving in and b'feeding? What do you go about still giving him his proper food? How can you watch your little one cry and surely the more distraugt he gets re the bottle the less chance there is of him ever taking it?

Also re giving up the bottle fight and trying the cup - will he get enough milk from this?

chipmonkey · 13/06/2008 20:50

becky, if you're worried about supply, you could just make sure to express milk to try to match what she's taken. But if it's only a couple of ounces you might not want to bother.

kstevo · 15/06/2008 16:40

Becky I have just found an e-book on re refusing the bottle on www.ask-nanny.com it's £2.99 and seems to be very sensible. It talks about reward and distracting. We've just tried doing some of her suggestions today and at least now our wee man no longer screams when he sees the bottle, allows it in his mouth and even drinks a bit! The main thing she suggests is that you don't take the bottle out of their mouths when they cry - you try to distract and calm them - you only remove it when they are calm. The theory being if you remove the bottle when they cry they think that crying gets them what they want. She also suggests 4 methods ranging from gentle to more hard core depending on how strong you are/how much time you've got. So fingers crossed - good luck!

Original poster
beckynbump · 16/06/2008 21:32

Just left dd with Nanny for a morning and guess what, she drank from the bottle when she was hungry. Guess she just realised I wasn;t there so she would have the next best thing. My sis is taking her for three days and nights in a few weeks and this has really gven me the confidence to leave her. Now I have realised that this is not a unique poblem to my little muchkin I am alot happier to leave her and be at work. Looks like I will have a little girl who tops up morning and evening in preparation.

First time I have asked a question on Mums net.....what a great bunch of people you are. Thanks a million!!!!

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