Refusing the Bottle at 6-8 Months

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Questions

• Strong-willed 6 month old refuses bottle
• 6 month old will not drink milk at daycare
• 6-month-old won't take bottle since first tooth came in
• 6-month-old's bottle strike!
• 6 months old won't take bottle
• 6.5-mo-old refuses the bottle
• 7-month-old refuses the bottle
• Breastfed 7-month-old won't accept bottle at night from dad
• 7.5-month-old won't take a bottle of breastmilk or formula
• 8-month-old chews bottle rather than sucking on it
• Getting 8-month-old onto formula and bottle
• 8mo old eating solids, but not taking bottles
• 8-month-old is bored with the bottle?

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Strong-willed 6 month old refuses bottle

April 2011

We need some advice on what to do with our 6 month old daughter who is very strong willed when it comes to taking the bottle, especially if it has breast milk. It has taken us two months to have her finally accept a bottle when she feels like it. She doesn't take it eagerly but will eventually take it. She seems to only drink formula from it but when we try to use breast milk she clamps her lips down. I've tried mixing the formula and breastmilk together and that didn't work. Does anyone have any advice what to do? Giving her a bottle is a struggle as she prefers the breast. I have tons of milk stored and would like her to drink that instead of formula. I am about to throw away some stored milk as it will be close to expiration date in the freezer. We need help. Thank you! Emeryville mom

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If she is hungry enough, she'll drink it. My kids were the same way. My pediatrician said keep trying and if she's hungry enough, she'll drink it. And sure enough, they both did. Remember, babies will not starve themselves. if she's not willing to drink it, just keep offering it to her, until she is. babymamma

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6 months is early to ween your baby. Since she wants to nurse, stop pressing your infant to drink from the bottle. Breast milk is much healthier than formula and nursing rather than drinking from a bottle is also healthier. You might be able to donate your frozen milk to a hospital so it won't go to waste. amma

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My first born baby, who is now a senior in high school, did the same thing at about 7 months. She has remained strong willed and it has served her just fine in life! She started refusing anything from the bottle and spit out formula when it was tried. Didn't matter if it was offered from babysitter, dad, or me. Sippy cup worked after a few weeks of low milk consumption. For whatever reason, she got back to drinking the milk, and nursed until one year. I'm not sure what form you froze the milk (bottle, ice cubes) but disquising it in other offerings may help put it to good use. I found that 2-3 times a day nursing worked fine and dimished pumping as my baby got older. I'm sure she'll stay healthy! anon

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You may have excessive lipase in your breast milk. Lipase is an enzyme that aids in the digestion of fats, and in some women with excess lipase, it begins to break down the fat in stored breast milk. This leads to a soapy or metallic taste in the breast milk that makes it unpalatable. Your baby might be rejecting the pumped and stored breast milk for that reason. This seems particularly likely since the baby will take a bottle no problem if it has formula in it. Look it up online. There are some things you can do about it: http://breastfeedingbasics.info/lipase-and-bad-tasting-breast-milk

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This might not be the answer you want but I'd give the breast milk to someone in need and just give her what she wants. My son almost NEVER took a bottle, finally at 8 months. I mean we tried everything and you just can't fool them. They know what they want and they want it fresh. They are darn smart. So if breastfeeding is an option and is possible then just see it to the end. angel

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Since baby is still nursing when you're around (therefore getting a good amount of your milk), it sounds like your main concern is the fluid issue, especially as the weather warms up. Since baby already takes formula from a bottle, you know it's not the bottle itself. I know you said you already tried mixing breast milk with formula, but since you didn't specify what proportion you used, I'll go ahead and suggest trying that again, starting with a very tiny mount of breastmilk (try 10%; if that doesn't work go to 5%. Go as low as you need to - eventually it will be low enough). After a few feedings of that, increase the amount very very gradually every few feedings. Again, it might take your baby just one bottle of each, or a whole week, but eventually it should be doable. If baby will take water in a bottle, you could also try the same process with water if you want to avoid so much formula. RK

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http://www.sanjosemilkbank.com/ The San Jose Milk Bank takes frozen breast milk which they mildly pasteurize for preemies who thrive on breast milk but have trouble with formula.

My son declined the bottle a lot after I went back to work when he was six months, and he's not very strong willed. Our nanny ended up cup feeding him, doing some bottles, mixing my milk with rice and oat cereals, and anything else that would work. It was frustrating. He ended up getting lots of nursing when I was home. His weight stayed good despite the bottle rejections. Good luck. - mix of approaches

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It may be too late for the milk you have stored, but you may still be able to pump and give milk. I had high lipase in my breastmilk, which meant that as the milk was stored over time that enzyme basically broke the fats down into soap. The milk was OK when it was just pumped but as it sat (even frozen) it began to smell and taste chemically and soapy. It's not spoiled, and it's perfectly safe, but understandably most babies won't take it. At the time I discovered this with my first baby I had to toss about 40oz of milk. You can disable the enzyme by scalding (heat it until just bubbling at the edges of the pan) shortly after pumping. How long you can wait until scalding depends on how much lipase you have and how picky your baby is. Scalding kills off some of the good stuff along with the lipase, but it's still good breastmilk. After that your milk can be stored as long as anyone's. Also -- if you have 100oz or more stored, try contacting the breastmilk bank in San Jose about donating. Tube-fed preemies wouldn't care about the lipase taste, so if your milk is donatable that's much better than having to toss it. Lipasey mama

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We had that very same problem. We tried all different kinds of bottles, assuming it was the bottle. Then we tasted the breast milk. It was terrible! Tasted like soap. I found out it was because I had excess lipase, an enzyme that helps them digest the fat in the milk (I hope I am recalling its function correctly). If my expressed milk was outside of me for more than 4 hours, it would turn. So, I had to start cooking my expressed milk (scald it to just before boiling). I was very sad about that because the cooking destroys the immunological benefits of the milk. But at least she would accept it. But still, even with that, we had trouble getting her to take the bottle consistently. As I was heading back to work, we hired a very experienced nanny just for a few visits, especially to train my daughter to drink from the bottle. I had to leave the apartment. Then it had to be my husband who fed her the bottle, not me-- again I had to leave the apartment. If I was home, she would sense it and the bottle would be rejected. Finally we got it figured out. Good luck! Andrea

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6 month old will not drink milk at daycare

Sept 2010

My daughter is 6 months old, and recently started at a daycare center. She is breastfed, and has never really liked bottles. Although she is in daycare from 9 to 5:30, she has never had more than 6 oz of milk at school, and yesterday had only 1.5 oz! My son had the same issue, but he was in a nanny share and she spoonfed him 20 oz of milk per day.

What is reasonable for me to expect a center to do? I find it unacceptable that we are paying SO much money, and my daughter has to nurse all night long because she eats so little during the day. Plus I am exhausted. Other than this issue, we really like the center (my son is there too), and my daughter is already bonded to her caregiver, so we aren't looking to leave, just for potential solutions. Thanks for your suggestions! Pamela

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My infant daughter went through this, but she finally got hungry enough to take the bottle. One thing that worked was putting her in a bouncy chair and feeding her from behind (the child only sees an arm holding a bottle to her mouth). You might want to have your partner bottle feed her to help her get used to the bottle. I've also heard of people going to a sippy cup. Good luck!

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So sorry you're having this problem; it sounds really tough. I hate to say it, but I think your expectations of the daycare spoon feeding your child formula or breast milk during the day are a little unrealistic. We have an amazing daycare, with a 1:3 ratio (teacher:child) in the infant room, and there is no way they could spoon feed a baby 20 oz a day. The daycare teachers wouldn't be able to properly care for the other infants in their charge because they'd be too busy trying to spoon feed your baby all day. If you need or expect that kind of intensive one on one care for your infant, you're better off with a nanny. What about skipping the bottle and going right to a sippy cup? The teachers could still treat it like a bottle (cuddle the baby, hold the cup while feeding, etc) but it wouldn't be a bottle. Or if you really want her to use a bottle, you might be better off working on it at home over the weekend, rather than having the burden be solely on the daycare. Have your partner offer bottles frequenly all weekend long while you pump. If the alternative (the breast) is not available, the baby will take the bottle eventually. Just some thoughts

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Our baby went through this too. For us it was as simple as switching the nipple shape. Almost every bottle has a round nipple which sets my son off into a fit but try to find a flat nipple and see if that works. We also introduced it during playtime rather than when he was already hungry. Good luck! - Laura

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6-month-old won't take bottle since first tooth came in

Dec 2004

I have a variation on the nursing strike. My 6.5 month old has been taking a bottle with no problem since she was 2 weeks old. Last week she sprouted her first tooth after several very painful days and now won't take the bottle at all. It doesn't matter what is in the bottle or even who tries to give it to her because she won't even taste it - just sees it coming and turns her head and tries to squirm away. I thought they didn't really have ''memories'' yet at this age, but my best guess is that she thinks the bottle will hurt her mouth. I should add, I'm also still breastfeeding (even the breast made her cry in pain a few times) and she has no problems with that but I work out of the house and pump during the week. I know nursing strikes typically last less than 2 weeks, but anybody have experience with bottle strikes? Michelle

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My daughter went through both nursing strikes and bottle strikes, mostly when she was slightly younger (3-6 months). This did correlate with teething,as she cut her first teeth at 5 months. Though very frustrating at the time, it did not seem to do her any harm, and never lasted more than 3-4 days at a stretch. On her worst days, she only managed to get down 1 ounce of expressed milk by bottle, while I was away for 8 hours. In our case, she was able to make up for it at night, since we coslept and she was a devoted reverse-cycle nurser, nursing A LOT in the night. Even when she was on a nursing strike, she would still nurse in the night when she was half-asleep. I'm not necessarily recommending this for you, cosleeping is definitely not for everyone. But if you give her some extra chances to nurse as much as she wants in the mornings and evenings, hopefully she'll weather the strike and be back to normal in a few days. Perhaps your daycare provider can offer water in a sippy cup if you are worrying about dehydration? My daughter started drinking water from a sippy cup around 6 months. Evette

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6-month-old's bottle strike!

July 2001

My 6 month old son has been on a bottle strike for about 6 weeks now. We are going nuts. I have a fairly flexible work at home schedule (luckily!), but I am soon going to be very busy and every day is a battle with this little guy. We feel as if we have tried everything: our nanny works with him every day that she is here (3 days) on the other days both my husband and I have tried. What we all essentially get is 1-2 hours of screaming and protesting. We have tried every nipple we can find (we are sticking with Avent for now). We have tried numerous holes.( WE are up to three holes right now.) We have tried warming it and not warming it. We have tried various different times of day... We have tried when he is starving and when he isn't hungry.

We obviously don't want to torture him, in fact we have been advised to used the bottle as a toy and give him a little sugar water to desensitize him. Tried it. He's wise to the game. Bottom line is this kid wants to breast feed. We are able to get 2 oz. at best into him but, again, it is a big struggle. Lots of tears and screaming (and yes, I can't bear it). It is so frustrating to see all of this expressed breast milk go down the drain. And a two hour battle can wreck our day, even if we are only trying to actively feed him for 10 collective minutes and the rest of the time is spent trying to calm him or ourselves down.

What can we do? I must be able to leave him alone with our nanny while I work with a client. I also really want my husband to have the experience of feeding him a bottle the way he used to when our baby took it just fine (which he did since he was 3 weeks of age). Any words of wisdom would be so appreciated!! Molly

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I had a very similar situation with my daughter when I tried to return to work after maternity leave. She had been taking a bottle from me and from my husband since she was 3 weeks old. Although we had only given her a few bottles a week, we felt she was comfortable with them. Then for some reason, when our nanny started working with us, the baby decided she would not take a bottle from her. The nanny got upset, the baby cried for hours and I could not work at all (since I knew what was going on at home). We also tried every bottle and every nipple available. The situation got worse and worse as everyone got very tense everytime it was time for a bottle feeding. It got so bad that the baby would not take a bottle from anyone.

I don't have a great solution to report...after three weeks of this my nanny quit, I decided to quit my job rather than have my baby go hungry, and we went several weeks without a bottle at all just to ease the tension. After that time, I was able to get my baby to take the bottle and our part-time babysitter was also successful. Eventually, my husband was able to give the baby a bottle again too. I am not sure what made the difference - at the time it really seemed like a personality conflict between the baby and our nanny, but since she stopped taking a bottle from anyone, I am just not sure.

I wish you lots of luck. I know how frustrating and difficult this situation is. One thing that people suggested to me was to try using a sippy cup rather than a bottle, but my baby was only 4 months old and was not very good with a cup at the time - maybe it is worth a try for you. Caroline

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Dear Molly, I had this problem with both of my children. The answer was: forget the bottle. Go straight to the sippy cup. We have had the best luck with the Pooh (The First Years) sippy cups (they have them at Target), because they don't have valves in them. It's hard for a baby to use the valved cups because they have to suck to get liquid, and I'm sure it's a different kind of suck. So, use the cups without the valves and just start with 2-3 ounces of breast milk (I also used a breast milk/formula combination at times) and tip a few drops in your baby's mouth at a time. They have taller thinner cups without handles and short rounded cups with handles. My son prefers the handles, my daughter the other type. It will take about a month for them to get confident with them. Your baby might take only half or one ounce in the beginning, but they definitely catch on fast. Then you can breastfeed at other feedings. My daughter did both for probably six months - until I weaned her and she stayed with the sippy cup. We started her at about six months, in preparation for day care at around 8 months.

With our daughter (our first) we tried every bottle/nipple combination known to man to no avail. Maybe at six months it's just too late to go to a bottle if you haven't been using it all along. They know a good thing when they see it! Good luck, Julie

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I don't mean to sound simplistic and perhaps I missed something. BUT... have you tried a cup? A six month old is old enough to cup feed - open cup or one with a top - and that might be a bit easier if he's refusing the bottle. Even a spoon is something that may be used. The milk can be fed plain or with food. If he's taking solids the breast milk can be mixed with cereal or other foods as well. His nanny can even feed it to him as soup out of a bowl. Best, Joan

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My 4 month old suddenly won't take a bottle either, and I hear this from a lot of people, so it must be pretty common. I've pretty much given up trying now that we're starting him on solid foods, but I'd be curious if anyone else has any advice on that because I'm not sure we're doing the right thing. Our baby took a bottle at 3 weeks, too, then stopped at about 3 months. We had some initial success with playing Baby Mozart videos while feeding him--he was distracted by the TV and before he knew it, it seemed, he'd drained the whole thing. But now, like you, nothing seems to work. Also like you, I luckily work from home, but the other day I had to be away from him for several hours and my husband tried unsuccessfully to give him a bottle twice. Then he used the milk from the bottle, mixed it with rice cereal and fed him with a spoon. When he got hungry again, he made a thinner mixture and spoon fed him. I fiure he was getting a decent dose of breast milk, though not the 3-4 oz he usually takes in a feeding. When I got home, he wasn't ravenous but he did have a long feed. I think he knows how to take a bottle now, but he prefers not to. Instead he'll just wait for me to come home. My question is--what do you do with these anti-bottle breastfeeders as they get older? When I'm not home, can a babysitter or my husband just feed solids instead? I hear breastfeeders can transition from breast to cup and skip the bottle, but what about at night, since he likes to nurse to sleep--will I always have to be home to put him to bed? Whitney

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Clearly your baby prefers to be at the breast. It is so wonderful to hear that you are so commiting to giving you little one the #1 best choice, mama's milk! Here are some things I recommend. Is it possible to tide baby over with foods...rice cereal...or other baby food when the breast is unavailable? Some babies who flat out refuse the breast will eat foods during mommy's absence and will make up for missed feedings when mom is there or may nurse a little more at night. Another suggestiong would be to try using a paper cup or even a sippy cup. My son started on a sippy cup at 4 months ( he was by no means an expert) and by 6 months could tolerate it pretty well. Does your baby realize that YOU are around when refusing the bottle? Many babies know that mommy is nearbye and will refuse to take breastmilk from a bottle if she is around. As far as you husband wanting to feed baby, I would not have him do this unless you were not around and baby needed to be fed. There are so many other ways Daddy can bond with baby besides bottle feeding. My husband was the only one who fed baby food to our little one, and this was a very special time for them. Dads can do bath time, go for walks, etc. I hope these ideas help! Teresa

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My daughter never took a bottle at all. I used a spoon, she was thrilled to use it. - Richa

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Give him a sippy cup. He's old enough. fiona

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At six months, our infant started taking a bottle much more easily after she saw her mother drinking water from one herself. It was not a baby bottle, but a one that we had used for hiking. That seemed to give her some kind of encouragement, or something. --Rachel

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I had the same problem with my nine month old. He took a bottle with no problem until he was about four months old. Then there were protests, fussing, even screaming and shrieking. Once in a great while, he would take a bottle, from my husband or someone else he knew and trusted. But for the most part, no go.

At nine months now, he will guzzle water from a bottle, but still not milk. But he is eating solid foods now, and that makes the difference. I can have other people care for him and not worry that he will go hungry because his appitite for solid food is so strong.

Since your baby is six months old, it might be time to start him on solids. Check with your pediatrician for advice on how to start. Most will recommend cereal, rice or oats, mixed with milk for baby's first solids. Use your pumped milk there. Then gradually add in other solid foods following your doctors instructions. I often mixed breast milk in with new foods to ease the transition. Now my baby mostly wants table food, ground up fine, and I no longer mix things with milk.

The main thrick with this transition is making sure the baby gets enough nutition from the variety of solid foods. Again, ask your pediatrician, plus there are some good books on infant nutrition. Since I don't work full time, I still nurse my baby enough to give him all the protien he needs. But it's a great relief to have others be able to feed him too. In fact, it makes those times we still nurse much more pleasureable for us both. Good luck, Carolyn

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On your six-month old rejecting the bottle, my daughter went through a similar phase when I tried to introduce the bottle at 4 1/2 months. It sounds like you've tried everything, but just in case I thought I would tell you what worked for us. First, I used breast milk for the first few months we partially bottle fed my daughter, but some of my friends had better luck with starting the baby out on the bottle with formula under the theory that breast milk comes from mom, and formula comes (in a bottle) from the babysitter. Whatever you do, try not to make it a struggle. I found that someone would try the bottle, and if it didn't work after an hour (or less) we would give up and I would breastfeed (not right away, but whenever I would have otherwise). We also didn't try everyday, and if one person (mom, dad, babysitter) had tried one day, the next time someone else would try (we tried to avoid being predictable). One of the things we tried was giving her sips out of tiny cups (the hospital gave them to us when we were having trouble breastfeeding for the first few days so we could give her a little formula without using a bottle), sort of priming the pump (we also tried that with a big medicine dropper). We also tried feeding her in unusual ways. For example, I would try, but I would do it while walking around the room with her in the Baby Bjorn. Our babysitter would sing to her while trying to feed her (my daughter has always loved music). She also took her outside and pushed her around in a stroller while trying (which takes a lot of coordination!). If dad or babysitter tried, I would leave the room and say goodbye so she thought I was gone and wouldn't cry out to me to feed her. Anyway, one day she decided it was okay and never looked back, and I'm sure your son will do the same. Stephanie

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A friend of mine returning to work at 6 months, with a breastfed baby who refused the bottle, gave the baby breastmilk mixed with cereal, spoonfed. And while the quantity was not as much as from a bottle, the baby just nursed more when mom was home. Jennifer

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Thanks so much to all of you who gave advice to our family when my son went on a bottle strike. The good news is that while he has still refused the bottle, he is very happy to eat any and all solid baby food that is put in front of him (don't worry, the kid's just up to rice cereal and veggie and fruit baby food). He also likes the Avent sippy cup, but so far only wants it with his meals. What a little grown up. So all is well, I can feel comfortable leaving him for a little while knowing he will eat something. Thanks all!!! Molly

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6 months old won't take bottle

Jan 2007

I am planning on weaning my 6 months old from breastfeeding but he won't take the bottle. I tried not breastfeeding him for 17 hours and only gave him both breast milk and formula from the bottle but he refuses to take it! He would take the milk if we spoon feed him and he likes to eat rice cereal. If anyone has any advice or tips on how to make babies take the bottle please help! Thanks First time mom

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When we were weaning my daughter we were told, by my midwife, that if we had difficulty I should leave the house and have my husband give the bottle. It could take all day and into the night but it might help. Nancy

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Hi. Generally, you want to start your baby on a bottle with expressed breastmilk before the baby turns 6 weeks old, provided he is latching on well and your milk supply is well established, or he will reject the bottle (according to my lactation consultant). Here are a few suggestions that you may or may not have tried that may be of help: 1) Start with just breastmilk until your son takes the bottle before introducing the formula. You'll have more success getting him to try the bottle if it has the breastmilk he is so familiar with. 2) Have someone else give him the bottle, such as your husband, or parents. And sometimes it helps if you are not in the same room. 3) You may have to try different bottles/nipples until you find one that he likes. This can get expensive, so you may want to check with friends and craigslist for anyone giving away bottles and then buy new ones based on the type your baby likes. It will take time, but with patience and perseverance, you can do it. Oh, and another suggestion. Some people say that if your baby is old enough, you can go from breast to sippy cut and skip the bottle. At 6 month old, your baby may be ready for a sippy cup, so you can try that as well. GOOD LUCK!! Cecilia

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Try a sippy cup. You might have to try a few different styles before finding one that works -- some babies prefer the straw sippies over the ones you suck from, ''nuby'' is also an ''easy'' sippy cup style. Many 6 month olds can handle the big kid cup just fine. in my cups!

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I'd suggest letting someone else attempt to feed your little one with the bottle. In fact, try going out with a friend for coffee/tea for a couple of hours and leave baby with his other parent, a family member or trusted caregiver.

Often babies who are nursed exclusively won't take a bottle from the person with the boobs.

Start gradually with one feeding a day from the bottle and slowly increase as the bottle is accepted.

Don't forget to pump while away from the baby for more than an hour or two or you could wind up engorged - stepping down nursing should always be a gradual process. (http://workandpump.com has some great tips for going back to work and pumping)

If he really won't take the bottle, try some other options. A sippy cup, a straw-sippy etc. There's also breast-shaped bottles that may help to ease the transition, you can get these online from One Step Ahead and some of the baby stores in Rockridge may carry them.

How established is your son with cereal? If he's in the middle of transitioning to solids and also transitioning to the bottle at the same time, it might be too many changes at once. If you focus on one first and get him comfortable with it, he may be more amenable to the other.

If he likes food and is eager to try solids, you might want to establish him on solids first. With a baby who likes food it doesn't take that long to get them transitioned over to more meals of solid foods and they need less milk as a result so that you might even be able to get away with feeding solids during the day and nursing when you're home, though generally speaking 6 month old babies still need a bottle or a nursing before or after a meal of solids. Beth

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Have you tried a little juice in the bottle? Maybe half juice half water? Jenny

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I undertand your concern becaue I am there. I started my son on the bottle when he was 4 weeks old and he was taking one bottle a day until he was 8 weeks old and then all of a sudden he refused. I tried all the tips available online, from friends etc. I tried different bottles, techniques etc. except the ''no choice starving'' technique. My son is 16 weeks old and he still refuses the bottle but every day, I religiously offer him a few ounces of breastmilk in the bottle hoping he will learn to accept it. I've heard some babies never take the bottle and its not really true that all babies ''eventually'' take the bottle. The reason I stressed over it was mainly because I was concerned about his feeding when in day care or just so I can get a break once in awhile while my husband looks after him. But I've learned to accept it and don't stress anymore. I don't go back to work until he is 6 months old and maybe he will be ready for a cup by then (which I've heard is another nightmare). You can try all the tips online (just type in baby refuses bottle on google) and be persistent, maybe your baby will ''eventually'' take a bottle. Good luck. mom of baby-on-bottle strike

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Have you tried different bottles? we use the born free bottles (with no biosphenol A) and they seem very different from other bottles. Our usually quite fussy son loves them. another first time mom

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My daughter did not take the bottle until about a year old. I weaned her at 15 months. Now she is 22 months and takes the bottle twice a day (I should have gone straight to the cup.) We tried everything from 10 weeks to 1 year old. It was frustrating esp. since she was never good at eating. She started her first few months at 50th percentile in weight and now in the 5th. She is a healthy girl with lots of energy. I went to work 2 days a week at 4 months. She just did not eat much (until around 10 months when she really took to solids) while I was at work. I think a baby will not starve themselves and that the 8 or so hours you are gone without food is ok. Take care and it will eventually work out... Another mom of a bottle refuser

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6.5-mo-old refuses the bottle

Sept 2005

Hi folks, I need your help!!! I am still breast-feeding my 6.5 month old son. We started solid foods, but it is not at a level to replace a meal yet. We have been bottle-feeding him once a week (more or less) with my milk, since he was 2-3 weeks old, and we did not experience any nipple confusion. We even tried formula several times, he accepted easily.

Now things changed all of a sudden. We haven't bottlefeed him for a month or so and now he refuses the bottle all together. We tried formula and my milk, day and night, when he is hungry and full, from my husband and me. We also tried a sippy cup (non-spill-proof) from which he currently drinks his water. He drank some but only a little ( 2oz).

We need to solve this problem soon, since I will start taking evening classes and I won't be at home for his before sleep feeding. Have you experienced similar problems? Do you have any advice and/or suggestions?

Cheers, Nes

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We went through a similar situation when my daughter was 6 months. i was getting ready to return to work part-time and even though she had taken bottles in previous months, she started to refuse the bottle. We tried everything, me giving her the bottle, my husband giving her the bottle, millions of different nipples, etc. I became very stressed about returning to work. Finally, one day my husband told me to just leave the house for a few hours so that my daughter would have no option but to take a bottle from him. I went out to lunch and a movie with a good friend. When I came home, I found out my daughter had taken 6 ounces while I was gone. It might not be that simple for everyone, but that's what worked for us.

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7-month-old refuses the bottle

Feb 2008

I have a terrible problem with my 7-month girl baby.She refused a bottle from 4 months ago.She was on breastfeeding but as I got post partum thyroditis 3 month after delivery so I stopped breast feeding. And the real problem is that She is lacking for the suction action and she keep the milk in her mouth without swallowing even after long time of keeping her hungery. But when she's sleeping,she take the bottle. Realy,she destroyed my life and this also affected her brother. Please advise me what to do with her. Note that I asked 3 pediatrians in her case and they told me every thing is ok sara

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You sound like you need some support. Here are a couple of links where there are people you can talk to:http://www.familypaths.org/, http://www.bananasinc.org/parents.php I'm not sure we have all the details as to your baby's problem but you could try other types of bottles if you haven't already. Some good ones are : Adiri natural nurser, Soothies, or Born Free. Their nipple shapes are more like a breast. Or you could try introducing a sippy cup and have your baby drink formula out of that. Please be patient with your baby. She needs you. anon

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Breastfed 7-month-old won't accept bottle at night from dad

Dec 2004

How can i get my 7 month old to accept bottles from papa at night? We've had NO LUCK convincing her I'm still alive and love her even if it's not me going into her in the middle of the night with boob in hand. We've tried offering her my pumped milk, rice milk, and formula. No go. We want to experiment with a bottle of formula to see if she can handle it and sleep better. any tips? tired

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It's probably because night nursing at 7 mos. is much more about comfort and familiarity than it is about getting calories. My son will take a bottle of expressed milk during the day, but he's never as satisfied with it as he is with nursing. Kids at this age generally don't *need* to eat during the night, so it's probably that she doesn't know how to put herself back to sleep without the breast. If your concern is about getting more sleep, I would try sticking with the nighttime nursing but gradually decreasing the amount of time you let her snack. (Not letting her fall completely asleep while nursing, at night or during the day, will help with this as well.) And if it's about letting her dad share in some of the nighttime duties, you can try letting him rock her for a couple minutes at each waking before bringing her in to you to nurse. She will probably protest at first (not because it's him, but because he's boob-less), but after a week or two she may well let him rock her to sleep, no food required. Good luck!

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Your baby may not be taking a bottle at night because she's ready to sleep through the night, or at least go those 12 hours without eating. At 7 months, my baby was down to 1-2 feedings at night, and he wouldn't eat first thing in the morning, so I decided he probably didn't really need the nighttime snacks. We started having my husband go in to soothe him when he woke up at night, without a bottle -- cuddling, often without actually taking him out of his crib, and singing lullabies. He would get pretty annoyed at first each time, since he wanted me, but after about 10 minutes he would calm down, and in 20 minutes (the same time it would have taken me to nurse him), he was on his way back to sleep again. Without about a week and a half, he was pretty reliably sleeping through the night. I think my husband offering him a bottle would have just woken him up more, since he wasn't nursing because he was hungry, just for comfort. I hope this turns out to be your situation as well -- you may soon be enjoying some great sleep!

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7.5-month-old won't take a bottle of breastmilt or formula

Nov 2005

My 7.5 month old daughter won't take a bottle of breastmilk or formula. I'm going back to work and don't know what to do. I've tried every nipple: Playtex, Avante, Medella, Gerber... no luck. I've pumped and immediately tried to feed her the warm milk, I've tried having my husband give the bottle, her babysitter to give the bottle... no luck. I have given her a bottle of water + apple juice just to see if she'd drink it and she thinks the bottle is just something to play with. She would rather go thirsty then drink from bottle.. oh dear, I'm worried. Any suggestions? EMM

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I had the same problem with my daughter (now 4 months). It turned out, for her, that the problem was that the milk wasn't at exactly the right temperature. So finally, I tried heating it so it felt warmer than I thought it should be and she slurped in right up. And now she takes it every time, whereas before she acted like I was trying to poison her. I'm planning on gradually reducing the temperature but haven't tried it yet. Don't know if this will help you but I thought I'd mention it. anonymous

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8-month-old chews bottle rather than sucking on it

May 2005

I have been gradually cutting down breastfeeding my 8 month old son - he loves his solids and eats a ton while I'm at work during the day. He nurses in the morning and evening and sometimes at night. For months my day care provider and I have been trying to get him onto a bottle or sippy cup, but all he will do is chew on it. He is interested in both bottle and cup, reaches for them, and puts them in his mouth, but then chews! Needless to say, he never gets more than half an ounce out, and most of that goes down his front. I wasn't too worried as I was still nursing, but he has just announced a nursing strike, and I am considering taking the opportunity to wean, but am panicked about how I'm going to get enough formula and water into him. Does anyone have any experience with bottle chewers? anon

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Chewing plus nursing strike says teething to me. If I were you, I'd continue nursing when not at work, continue offering cups of ebm or water during the workday, and hope those teeth come through soon! I also wouldn't wean an 8-month-old, nursing strike or no nursing strike, just so you know my position. I'd be working like crazy on getting him back to the breast so that I didn't have to worry about cups and bottles. Your baby is a little young to go an entire workday without breastmilk but not by much, and if he eats lots of solids he'd probably do fine with morning and night nursing only.

I'd probably stop offering baby bottles at all, and try various other things -- with water only at first, so that spills won't matter much. Sippy cups with different types of valves and spouts, open cups, sport bottles, straws. Most likely, SOMETHING will work.

If your caregiver really can't get him to drink anything, feed lots of ''wet'' foods like fruit, cereals mixed with water or milk, yogurt. And count diapers to assure yourself that he's not getting dehydrated -- you want to see at least 6 wet ones per day.

Good luck! Holly

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Our 15 month old son who was 9 weeks premature has had multiple feeding issues and sees a pediatric feeding specialist regularly. For the same issue, she recommended trying several different sippy cups to see if he would take to one.

Initially, he did have limited success with the kind with no valve that actually releases fluids when the spout is chewed. Most of it ended up on his bib (waterproof is best to start) but he did get the understanding that it was for drinking. Later we taught him to use the Avent magic cup with the soft spout by teaching him first how to make kissy noises, then getting him to imitate us making the noise with the sippy cup in his mouth. At first it surprised him that milk came out and he sputtered, but now he's a pro. Hope this helps. Good luck! mom of twins

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Getting 8-month-old onto formula and bottle

Aug 2004

I have been exclusively breastfeeding my 8 month old and now want to get her onto both a bottle and formula. She has reluctantly taken a bottle with breast milk and will take a few sips of water from a bottle but has absolutely no interest in formula. In fact, she typically gags when i try to give it to her. We have tried every type of formula available!

So, I had been trying to express milk with a manual pump with extremely meager results. After reading the rave reviews about electric pumps i went and dropped $300 on an electric one. Now, after 4 attempts I have not even managed to get 1 oz. of milk.

I am both frustrated and at a loss as to what the next step should be. While I don't need to transition my child due to returning to work I do need to get her on a bottle for my own well being. I have not had a moment to myself since she's been born because of my exclusive nursing. Any feedback and advice will be greatly appreciated!! anon

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Hi, we had/have this same issue w/our first & second! First question, have you started your baby on solids? If not, that was definitely a help w/the older one in terms of getting her used to another food source. If you have started solids, second question, have you tried a sippy cup (instead of a bottle)? I am sure you've tried all the ''tricks'', i.e. bottle from another person; when the baby is super hungry, when you're out (and I mean OUT) of the house, in front of a Baby Einstein video (or some other form of distraction), from behind the baby (the magic bottle)...Also, I am sure you've played around w/the different types of nipples that are out there. Did you try the the ''Breastbottle'' available at One Step Ahead (http://www.onestepahead.com/jump.jsp? lGen=detail=686=PRODUCT=686=11 7), it's a bottle shaped like a breast.

Okay, back to the sippy cup, if you haven't tried that, our pediatrician recommended starting w/one that doesn't require them to sip, so one of the free flow cups, you'll obviously have to go slow to begin with. In the end, this is what worked w/my older daugher ~6ish months and it was such a relief, I was in a panic for several months, thinking I would never get a break from the nursing! So I do understand your wanting to introduce an alternate method. Unfortunately, my 4.5 month old is not taking to well to the sippy cup, it's been hit or miss. But I am keeping my fingers crossed.

And another trick is to feed solids and then give the bottle/sippy cup right afterwards.

Don't worry, something will work out, I felt fairly desperate w/my older one, I felt like she would NEVER take anything but my breast... If you want to email me for feedback, we literally tried EVERYTHING with my older one...and did have success eventually. hb

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here are things that worked for us at the beginning: daddy gives bottle bottle during car ride funny shaped bottle baby can hold facing baby outward while feeding with music or TV on (I know, but it's only for the first couple of times) change different nipples (our baby liked a latex one better at first then we easily moved her to avent silicone ones) good luck anon

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I have a few pieces of advice about this. I was only able to produce much by pumping when I nursed my son on one breast and pumped the other at the same time. Also I gave him goat's milk mixed with breast milk when I had to supplement, he never had formula. I figured with the small proportion of his intake from the bottle (compared to breastfeedings and solid foods) it was ok if it wasn't as fully balanced as formula, and formula seemed like it was overhyped to some extent. I hope this is helpful, Alma

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Since your purpose is to get a break now and again rather than to go to work all day every day, and since your baby is 8 months old, you shouldn't need to use formula. Although it is nutritionally the best replacement for breastmilk, older babies who only need alternatives to breastfeeding a few times a week or less can do just fine with solid foods and other liquids (water, perhaps diluted juice, and even small quantities of cows' milk or other types of milk), ideally from a cup, not a bottle -- and for babies like yours who dislike bottles and reject formula, using other supplements is a big sanity saver. If your baby will eat other foods and/or drink from a sippy cup, you should be able to leave her for at least several hours and up to a full day, with no bottles bei! ng necessary. It may not be optimum nutrition (of course, formula's not optimum either) but it'll get you your break, with a lot less stress and agony for both mom and baby! You may also want to try a few tricks to increase your pump yield -- not everyone does respond well to a pump, no matter what, but if you're not sure you're doing everything you can to maximize your yield, post again for advice on that subject. Good luck! Breastfeeding mom

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8mo old eating solids, but not taking bottles

Sept 2005

Hi I'm still breastfeeding my 8 month old baby (and loving it) but am slightly distressed that she seems to want to consume only solid food now and has little interest in taking a bottle from our nanny. She still nurses with me 3 times a day, but I'm concerned she might not be getting enough liquid/breast milk. Also, seeing as I want to continue breastfeeding I need to pump while I'm at work. Before I decide to start donating my breast milk (which I'm so excited to do!) I want to see if anyone has any thoughts on holding on to it. Do you think she'll ever take bottles of milk again? Thanks for your help! Krista

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I just went through this with my 9.5 month old. I went back to work in the middle of August and it took until this past week for her to start taking milk away from me (now she will drink about 4-6 oz). One thing I did was to mix breastmilk into her food, so she at least got a little bit. I also had her caregiver continue to offer her the bottle or cup several times a day and I guess one day she decided to take it. She is in a nannyshare 3 days a week, so she also saw the other baby taking a bottle and that helped as well. The bottle that ended up working is a cheapy from Payless or Longs: KinderGrip by Playtex. My daughter likes it in part because she can hold it herself. Good luck! Miranda

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After having to bottle feeding my first child (premie with sucking issues), I wanted no part of bottles with the next two. I weaned my second and third babies right on to a cup. I started them with sippy cups at about six months, so by nine or ten months they were totally proficient. I'd suggest offering your baby a cup of milk or water often, in addition to nursing, and forget about bottles. If she's nursing three times a day she's probably getting plenty of milk. The bathtub is a good place to practice with a cup, by the way. Jan

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My son did the same thing. I thought it was a good thing though. No need for his dad or nanny to fuss with bottles. We transitioned nicely to the sippy cup (eventually) and it was great not having to break a toddler from his comfort bottle.....he doesn't have one!

You can tell they're getting enough if there are plenty of wet and poop diapers and if they're growing/gaining weight. If you kid wants to eat let him! When my son did this I just stopped pumping. Nursing a few times during the day and at night kept my milk up fine and i figured there was no need to be exploding with milk if he's eating more food.

We have to listen to our kids, and lots of the time they're doing what's best for themselves. Good luck, monica

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8-month-old is bored with the bottle?

Nov 2004

My baby boy decided he'd had enough of breastfeeding at 6 months. Now, 2 months later, he seems to be getting bored with bottles! He has been teething like a madman, but he doesn't seem to be teething now, he just keeps refusing to nurse from a bottle. He does very well with solid food, and he likes watching us eat and sometimes imitates our chewing motions when we're eating. We're wondering if it's at all possible that he's noticed that we don't drink from bottles, and therefore it's time to move on to cups. Before we embark on a very messy experiment with formula in sippy cups (we've been practicing with water). Has anybody else heard of babies weaning themselves from bottles at this young an age?

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I think kids can be very different about how they want to drink so I'm sure it's not unheard of for an 8 month old to refuse the bottle. My daughter went almost straight from nursing to sippy cup by 1 year because she just never got into the bottle. They make lots of sippy cups that are spill proof (or at least mostly) so it doesn't have to be that messy. The one that works best for us is the Playtex Sipster. It looks more like a ''big kid's'' cup but doesn't spill so maybe your son will be into that. good luck

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Our 9 month old is weaning himself from breastfeeding and also taking the bottle less. He has been drinking water from a sippy cup for a while (and recently from a regular cup) and one thing I noticed is that if the liquid doesn't flow fast enough for his taste, he rejects it. The same thing happened with his bottle the other day when our Nanny accidentally used a #1 flow nipple instead of a #4. He refused it. Perhaps this is the problem. Mom of a Milk Chugger

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Eight or nine months is a really common time for babies to go through a nursing strike, so I imagine the same could be true for a bottle-fed baby, though I admit I've never heard of it! I also know that babies who have one nursing strike often have another, so the fact that yours did at 6 months may indicate that the same thing is happening now with the bottle.

It's most often related to teething, but it can also be due to ear infections or other illnesses that can make sucking painful, or just to that being developmentally a distractible age. Sometimes it's related to overfeeding of solids, too, so be sure you don't conclude that your baby is really ready to ''wean''; an 8-month-old still relies on and needs the nutritional punch of breastmilk, or formula, even if he appears to be objecting to the container in which it is served! (Solids don't have the same nutrient-to-volume ratio, so you don't want an infant to 'fill up' on solid foods before nursing, or a bottle of formula, any more than you want a kindergartener to 'fill up' on ice cream before dinner.) Trying a cup is probably a good idea. Try a straw, too, and/or a sport bottle. And/or mix some of his solid foods (cereal, mashed potatoes) with formula. But hey, count your blessings -- at least you probably won't have to worry about him still using a bottle at 2 or 3 years old! anon

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I would seize this opportunity to wean your son from the bottle- -why wait? It could be harder to wean him later. My daughter never really liked the bottle, so drank from a sippy cup from about 7 mos. I don't understand what you mean about sippy cups being messy? As long as the valve is in place, the formula won't leak out when he tips it upside down or drops it--that's the beauty of the modern sippy cup. anon