Feeding a 5 Month Old

i pumped at work 3 times a day to build up supply until we knew exactly how much she was taking at each feeding. At that age, it was about 4 oz but quickly went up to 5-5.5 per feeding.

If you mean breastmilk, you might wish to research what you need to pump as well as BF at home -- it's difficult but so rewarding.

I did both with both children, and around 5 mos, I pumped 3x at work and sometimes 1x during middle night, with BF 2-3x daily, and they were taking around 28-32 oz in bottles during my work day.

It's great to be able to give them what only you can this short time. Good luck:)

I am assuming you will be pumping and giving him your milk? When you pump you will know how much you pump out. At that age, I pumped about 3.5 oz. or 3.75. You would have to give him formula- not cow's milk at that age if you weren't giving him your milk.

In addition to the previous response I would recommend looking at the book Super Baby Foods. It states that baby needs about 2 1/2 oz of milk per pound of body weight. Divide it over how many feeedings you already have in a day & that's about your amount per bottle. Not sure exactly what kellymom.com states but it has been helpful to me in the past.

Great job on the breastfeeding! My daughter never took a bottle (very difficult since I worked full time) but my son did. When he was four months old I remember portioning the breastmilk into about 2oz portions and when he was 6 months I portioned it into 3 oz portions. That way, he could have a bit, then the sitter could give him more if he needed it.

From what I remember, a lot of breastfed babies will have fewer ounces of breastmilk than formula fed babies take of formula.

Good luck!

you might want to give him as much as you can pump and then supplement the rest (diffrent bottle) with formula. 8 ounces or more should do (you'll know if he is still hungry). He may not like formula as much as he does your milk. Also, be forewarned, he most likly will not take the bottle from you or anyone else (if you are in the house). I had to leave my sonwith my mom over night and at first, he wouldn't take the bottle from her and went to bed without eating, but then he woke up at midnight and was starving and finally took the bottle. When I brought him home, he still refused to take the bottle from me, but did okay with my husband. It took several days before he figured he'd get more from the bottle.

Crazy enough most babies actually take about the same amount from 1 month thru about 6 months and then they go thru another major growth spurt!

But somewhere on kellymom.com there is a calculator or a way to determine the amount of expressed milk based on the baby's weight and the number of times per day they eat.

about 5 or 6 ounces, but varies with each child. He should be starting rice cereal so the bottles will cut down as well

Be forewarned that baby might not take food, be it breast or bottle, from anybody but you. My daughter was breast fed and for a while, we thought she hated all bottles. We tried a million different ones, including one shaped like a breast where you poured the milk in from the bottom. Nothing worked. She would just cry until I got home. And then one day I tried to give her the bottle and she drank it! She finally started taking bottle from her dad when she was about 6 months. At daycare, which she started at nearly 7 months, she refused the bottle. Instead, she started to eat solids, but then started accepting bottles from people she also loved, like grandma and grandpa. So go figure. How stubborn is your kid?

I agree - start with 4 oz. You can always give him more if he's hungry :)

S.,
I would start with 4 oz. and see how he does. If he is still hungry after drinking the 4 ounces, he will let you know :) and you can increase the amount gradually.
Blessings

S.-

Our first was a snacker - he NEVER took more than 6 oz (even at a year) of pumped milk. At 3.5, he's still a snacker and rarely eats a full meal (but snacks a lot).

Our daughter is completely different and consumed much more at one setting.

I'd recommend starting with 4 oz. If it's not enough, try more until you can better assess how much he needs at each feeding.

At that age, we were packing 4 6oz bottles/day for day care. Some days she'd go through it all, other days, she'd have some left over. If you're using breast milk, it can be re-refrigerated (if you're at home - that's what we had the babysitter do with our son). If it's formula, it's less stable and needs to be consumed in an hour making it a little tricker.

Here's a guide from the American Academy of Pediatrics on approximate amounts and schedules at his age:
http://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/f...

If he still won't take a bottle you could always try a sippy cup. Some kids are ready for one at 5 months.

My son is now about 50/50 breast milk/formula and he is also 5 months old. He's been drinking about 5oz of formula per feeding sometimes less though. Up until this week I he was drinking 4oz bottles but sometimes he was acting like he wanted more which is why I increased. I think he's going through a growth spurt which they do between 4-6months.
Try 4oz of formula. Have your husband or grandma feed it to him. Go get a pedicure or do some grocery shopping otherwise you'll end up nursing him if he doesn't take to the bottle right away. Funny how that works though because if you're not there, he'll drink the formula most likely. If he doesn't like it, try again and again.
Good luck!

You can look up how much a 5-month old needs to consume in ounces and plan accordingly. I think in general, anywhere from 4-8oz per feeding 4-8 feedings per day is typical . I would fill up a 6-8oz bottle and see how much he drinks a few times and go with that. Good luck and congrats on BF and pumping this long!!!