Bottle Tricks!!!

LOL first of all you have a boy!! Don't most always want the tit? Have someone else give him the bottle and don't be in the room. If he can smell you he will want it fresh.

My middle daughter was the same way. I just had to "trick" her by offering/baring breast, then slipping in bottle.
You know that boob looks, feels, smells & tastes like mommy & love! The bottle - just plastic and rubber. You can see how LESS pleasant that would appear! Which would you choose?
Don't think it was an easy trick to pull off either, took days.
She is 18 now and has very keen sense of smell like me. Good luck!

I used to make the formula really warm and then have dad or someone else give him the bottle. My husband used to distract our the kids with walking around outside when he was feeding them. It gave them something else to look at and they weren't so concerned with the bottle. And yes you have to be far away, they can smell you.

Good morning D. - When I wanted my daughter to begin getting used to a bottle (as my time to go to work was getting closer) I had my husband feed her with a bottle. If you try to introduce a bottle, the baby knows you are his mom and the "right" way for him to eat with you is not using a bottle..=) If you don't have someone else who can introduce the bottle, try sitting him in one of those little bouncy recliner seats - that way he won't be too close and able to smell you and your milk. Good luck!

Honestly, I don't think there is much of anything to do. My second son wanted only the breast. I talked to the pediatrician about it and he said that some kids just won't take the bottle and that was how my son was.We tried everything, all bottles, nipples, shapes and sizes, pumping breast milk into the bottle, and nothing worked. I was concerned because I was working part-time and sometimes gone for more than 4 hours and he still refused a bottle. I would just nurse him before I left and immediatley when I came back. We started cereal and baby food right at 5 months to supplement for him not having milk every 2- 3 hours. As he got a little older a sippy cup worked. He sorta weaned himself about 11 months.

Hi D.,

I know you said you have tried every bottle, but most people haven't heard of Adiri. You can buy it online and in some stores. It is shaped just like a breast and most babies will take it. Its around 12 dollars for one- Good luck. Also, try having someone else feed your son the bottle. Sometimes they will wait it out if they know that mom is there. You could also try a dark room, feed the baby like you are giving the breast, but hide the bottle under a blanket. That works too. Good luck to you and I hope this helps.

Molly

hi there,

We ended up bringing the bottle out at dinner and had our daughter play with the bottle and bite it if she wanted to and then once she figured out it had milk in it; she wanted it. We would only bring it out at dinner for a while and then I had my mom who was watching her during the day use it. But we also went to the sippy cup early b/c she wasn't taking the bottle, so that is another option as well.

I have also heard people putting the bottle out with toys and letting the baby play with it so they are comfortable with it, though I didn't try this.

Good luck. I am sure you will find something that works. It just takes a little time!

C.

we just went through the same pain, I had to go back to work and my son was heading to daycare and had to transition. I tried every bottle under the sun and had people come feed him (I even left the house so he wouldn't smell me). One person suggested that I give him a little sugar water in the bottle. I wish I had a miracle tip for you but for us, the only thing that worked was persistence and the drop into daycare where he didn't have a choice. From there he took a few days but now is eating great and I can give him bottles at home too. I also tried not to take away the nursing at bedtime or in the morning so he'd feel comforted at those times. Other tips I got were try giving him bottles in a sitting or upright position (put him in his carseat or swing), my son likes it when I just put the tip in his mouth to play with before he takes it in (he hated getting it shoved in), if the bottle was in the fridge make sure the nipple isn't too cold before you give it to him and if you're giving breastmilk give him something you pumped the same day so he's familiar with the taste. Good luck!

well im only 16 but i baby sit for quite a few moms..you can try putting something sweet on the nipple of the bottle to make it appealing and you just cant give into nurse feeding him because if you do he wont ever stop. You just have to let him know he is only getting a bottle in a nice way like giving him a chance to use the bottle. maybe even by someone else holding him it could work someone else hold him and feed him. thats about all I have learned from my experience! Hope it helps a lil!
E.

I had the same problem when my son was about 4mo. old as well. My advice is to have someone else to give him the bottle at least once a day. My son has eventually gotten used to it and he is ok with any kind of bottles now (currently 8 mo. old). Soon you will find nursing in public is getting harder and harder when he gets more stimulated with his surrounding. Good luck and keep trying!

He may not take the bottle from you but give your pajama top (something that smells like you) to a family member and try having them give the bottle to the baby. It does work.

Hi D.
Have you tried all different kinds of nipples? orthodontic, latex? My daughter was the same way. She eventually took platex drop-in's latex orthodontic nipples. The texture is different from silicone nipples and they seem softer. Try to offer a bottle of warm breast milk once a day. Make sure you hold him close to your body so he can feel your warmth and smell you. Hopefully he'll get the hang of it. Good Luck!!

I know you said you tried all bottles...even the ones that are shaped like a boob? They are supposed to be the closest you can get. Both of my kids liked the Playtex nursers and I liked them because I could push the air out of them causing less gas for my little ones.

Here are a few tricks I remember. Have someone else give the baby the bottle. Have them try to feed them in an area different from where you nurse. Try to leave the house while the baby feeds if you can... if the baby sees or smells you they will not want a bottle. And it's also harder for you to listen to them cry and tempting to go ahead and nurse.

Don't worry our baby will take a bottle when he is hungry enough!

When our son was about 6 months, we were out on a hot day and gave him water from the bottle. That seemed to be a turning point in his ability to drink from the bottle and not just chew on it.

My daughter did not want to take the bottle either at 4 months. What actually helped was that I gave her the bottle sitting upright with back up against my body. I guess she thought Mommy comes with the food then this must be food too, but I found out she likes her milk room temp where my son liked it straight out of the refrigerator. I used the Breast flow it has a nipple inside a nipple so that my baby actually has to work to get the milk ust like when she nurses.

You've been give some good tips, and I don't want to discourage you - but some children just WON'T take the bottle! And you may want to prepare yourself for alternatives.

My story:
My youngest son REFUSED, refused, refused to take the bottle. I had Grampa give him the bottle, dad give him the bottle, brother, sister, warmed it, put oatmeal in it, tried every bottle and EIGHT (8) different nipples! I flew my mom in from out of state and left him with her for 6 hours several times. He didn't cry, and DIDN'T take the bottle. I was trying to transition back to work, so it was essential he get on the bottle. This all started, and I kept trying, from 4 1/2 to 5 months on... I began bringing him to the home care 3 days a week while I was still on leave to see if she could get him to take the bottle. NOPE!

So...we transitioned him to a cup. I put my breast milk in a sippy cup at 5 months and he drank it. Since he wasn't getting as much milk (with spillage and all) as he'd likely get from a bottle, I also went to nurse him on my lunch break every day until he was 1 year old. I was blessed to work close enough to the home care - and it worked out beautifully.

So, just be prepared and get creative!

We just started trying the bottle with my son last night and he is 3 months old. We are using the Playtex drop ins and I used the "slow flow" nipple. What we did was we had my husband give him the first bottle and he did not sit in the rocker that I usually breast feed in. I didn't sit near them or anything (I took pictures) and we started at dinner time. I then breastfed him before bed, during the night and this morning, until lunch time when my husband gave him another bottle. He seems to be taking to it well, maybe he will do better with it if you aren't in the room. That is what my cousin had to do with her son, leave the room and not talk so he couldn't hear her voice. Good luck!