9 week old and amount of formula

[everittfootball]

I am in the process of changing from breast feeding to bottle feeding, I am unsure how much milk to give DS, I am offering 5 oz when he is hungry and he is taking 3-4 1/2 oz every 2-4 hours......... Is this too much or not enough, can you over feed a baby???

Also, should I be giving water as well?

This is my first visit to mumsnet and would be grateful for any advice offered.........

everitt - have you spoken to the HV about this? She might have some ideas to help you. The side of the pack of formula gives a very rough figure of how much you might expect your baby to take.

Actual amounts and frequency vary with the weight and the appetite of the individual baby - and you are in a good position to judge that. Also if he is still having any breastmilk at all, this is likely to affect his appetite for formula. So you prob continue doing what you're doing ie watching him and guaging what he needs feed by feed

Normally, babies whether bf or ff do not need water.

Do you have to swap to formula totally? If you plan to keep some breastfeeding going for whatever time you can, this might have an impact on at least some of the formula feeds you give. If you keep the formula intake down, you'd preserve your milk supply longer, if that's what you want.

Hope this helps

hanks for that, am stopping breast feeding completely s it just wasn't working, fed DS1 for 6 months but was not possible with this baby......... need to keep my sanity intact............

do you think you can over feed a baby, i am unsure and am really keen to continue to respond to his demands as much as possible but with a bottle rather than the breast..........

Yes, you can overfeed with a bottle, but not if you are watching for the baby's responses and behaviour, and it sounds like you are doing this fine

Babies enjoy sucking a lot and some will suck on a formula bottle beyond satiety with ease - with breastfeeding, the comfort sucking happens without taking in vast volumes as babies get good at controlling intake with fluttery sucks and less deep sucks and not swallowing as often. It's not as easy for them to 'fine tune' their intake with formula bottles, so it's up to the carer to observe, and maybe offer other sucking comfort (dummy, breast (even if no longer bf), finger, whatever...).

Sorry bf did not work out for you.

Everitt

When DS was 9 weeks old, he was having about 5oz formula, every 4 hours, and going a little longer at night - about 11am to 5am. No extra water, apart from an ounce of boiled water once when he was constipated.

BUT - That was my DS. Yours may well be different. I found that the guidelines on the tin weren't really right for us. We got to 5oz every 4 hours by trial and error, although I understand that 4 hours is quite a long stretch, and that 3 hours is more normal.

Thanks again now I understand and will only make 4 oz bottles from today until he spreads his time out more. It was a very hard decision to give up breastfeeding but after a tongue tie, a very active older brother and DS2 being a VERY "sucky" baby I now feel relieved we have decided to go with the bottle. At least someone else can now pacify him (would not take a dummy until yesterday!!) and I can re-connect with DS1.

Now all I need to do is get him to sleep in the day for longer than a cat nap (one day.............)

Thanks Again....... I know where to come next time I have a quert, silly question or just over anxiety