feeding

[properbird]

I have a 2 1/2 week old and i'm bottle feeding him. Up until a few days ago we'd been feeding him 70ml every 4 hrs but was finding that we were waking him for his feed. I felt we should try and give him feeds when he was hungry for them so we're now giving him 90ml every 5 hrs. He guzzles it down and so I feel he is ready for it more now. I have periods in the daytime however where he gets very cranky and wont settle - i'm not sure if this is over-tiredness or he needs more food? He is settled through the night and feeds 5 hrly no problem.
This is new territory for me as my 3 yr old was breast fed for the first 6 weeks and i fed on demand. maybe i should be doing that with my newborn even though i'm bottle feeding??
Can anyone offer any suggestions/solutions??

If he finishes the bottle and seems content, he's had enough. If he finishes but gets upset that it's all gone, you could try larger amounts. If he's cranky, check if he needs winding. Babies that 'guzzle' from bottles can often suck down quite a lot of air and that can stop them settling.

No experience with bottle feeding, so apologies if i'm showing my ignorance in trying to help!

I tended not to wake DS for feeds - if he was sleeping i let him sleep (providing he wasn't jaundice or had other health needs which might make him sleepy). I was also told by my HV to try feeding him in the first instance if he was crying or seemed unsettled. Her advice was that if he wasn't hungry he wouldn't have much/ any and i'd then know something else was wrong with him. This was excellent advice - 9 times out of 10 he was hungry!

2 weeks-ish is growth spurt territory so your LO might be sleeping/ feeding more for this reason. I would just go with what he seems to need. But like i said, i'm not an expert in bottle feeding and not sure whether feeding on demand is encouraged.

Are you feeding every 5 hours in the day or just at night?

I think feeding on demand is the thing to do, even with bottles, for such a young baby.

every 5 hours doesnt seem often enough to me especially with a very young baby. At that age ds fed 2½ - 3 hourly. Does he cry/is he unsettled before 5 hours are up? If so, offer a feed. Does he finish the 90mls? If so, increase the amount in the bottle