How to Get 11 Week Old to Take a Bottle??

When your mom and husband try, are you in the house? Babies can smell you. For my exclusively breastfed son to accept a bottle, I had to leave the house (not even MY house, but at my mom's house) for a few hours with my husband and let my mom give him the bottle. Try that.

Hi S.,

I've been there, and I got some really good advice on here (try clicking on my profile - you can probably see my question from Dec. 2008). It was really stressful because, like you, I was going back to work. Unfortunately, despite the good advice - including advice from my sister-in-law, who does this for a living - my son just never took to it. He would go all day long with me at work rather than take the bottle. But the good news is he didn't starve, and my husband was able to get some pumped milk into him with a medicine dropper and spoon, and ultimately a cup around 5-6 months. He just nursed a lot when I was home, and when I could, I came home at lunch (or met somewhere in between) and nursed him. I really, really hope some of the tips on this site help you, and I hope your son is not as headstrong as mine! But please know that even if he is, he will be fine. My son was 90th percentile for weight at his six-month appointment.

Best of luck, and happy holidays!
A.

Hi S.~

When my husband would give my babies my breastmilk from a bottle, he would sing softly to them, while craddling them so close to his chest and even a little bouncy motion. (Sit on the corner of the bed with feet on floor and move up and down with baby and bottle in arms.)

We were also coached by the NICU nurses to move the nipple around to stimulate the babies. (Also put the nipple in and move it around slowly in the mouth and begin to pull the nipple out very slowly, but not all the way out of the mouth. That got a response out of the babies to suck and catch the nipple before it was removed.)

However.... my daughter was not always receptive to the bottle even if breastmilk was in it. There were times where she flat out just wanted it from the breast. My husband would seem to take it personally and it seemed frustrating to him that she refused to be fed by him. I would just say... "Switch babies, please." Since my son would suck the bottle nipple or be breastfed without any problems." But... I would want to make sure my son was actually breastfed too. But the middle of the night feedings would often be me breastfeeding my daughter while my son was fed with the bottle by my husband.
I used Dr. Brown bottles and was happy with them. Is the size of the nipple not pleasing to him or the shape or texture of it? I had to start with very small preemie sized nipples since my twins were almost 10 wks. early.

It may be a good idea to be completely away from your baby while your husband is giving him a bottle. Even if he can't see you, your baby can smell your scent and want your breasts instead of the bottle.

Well good luck and congratulations on the birth of your baby. Babies are truly blessings from God.
~J.

When I had my daughter and knew I would be going back to work her pediatrician suggested that once she was breastfeeding with no problems that I or someone else should give her at least one bottle daily to get her acclimated. I fed her breastmilk exclusively so beginning the pumping when she was a few weeks old worked out great for me. She had no problem with the bottle when I went back to work when she was 12 weeks, and I think the fact that she still received breastmilk helped.

That said, i would try switching nipples on the bottles to try and get him to take one, make sure he's hungry when you offer it, hold him close just as you do when he nurses, maintain his routine as much as possible. Oh, and if you have someone else give him the bottle leave the room so he can't see or hear you, if my daughter knew i was in the vicinity she always refused the bottle. Don't give up and do offer a bottle as many times each day and at the times you think he'll be taking one when you return to work.

Hang in there, he may not like it but if you make it as pleasant an experience as possible he will adapt.

My daughter NEVER took a bottle and wouldn't.
My son would.
I breastfed both of them.
For my son, I used the "MAM" brand bottles. From Amazon. It is BPA free and natural nipple and not widely found in stores. It is widely used in Europe.
Good bottles, my son liked it.
It comes in 3 packs and is reasonable.

But yes, some babies, will NOT take a bottle.
If that is the case, you need to try perhaps, using a medicine dropper, to feed him. Dehydration, is something you don't want to happen.
And baby needs feedings, and on-demand.

If you've tried making it as much like the breast as possible and that's not working then go the other route and make it as different as possible-- have hubby try totally different positions, etc. When he gets hungry enough he'll do it! (Or he'll reverse cycle and sleep a lot while you're at work and nurse A LOT while you're at home)

My daughter never took a bottle or pacifier - I tried to get her to take a bottle of expressed milk because I thought it would be a way to help my three year old bond with her to help feed her. She would just push the bottle nipple out of her mouth over and over. If I actually got her to latch onto the bottle (or a pacifier) she would gag.
I didn't have to go to work, so I just gave up on both bottle and paci. I tried introducing the paci a few months later to try and get more sleep at night, no go, she still gagged on it.
Seeing as this is a neccessity for your little guy, I say just keep trying different bottle nipples and different people offering it to him while you are out of the house. I suppose that he would get hungry enough at daycare that he would eventually eat, but I'm sure you don't want to leave him without knowing he has mastered the bottle. I'm sorry I'm not more helpful, but wanted to let you know that some babies just don't go for the bottle, it's not anything you are or aren't doing correctly!

S....I have had babies come to me that were exclusively breastfed for several months and then switched to bottle/breast when mom went back to work. It might take some time but eventually he WILL take the bottle.

Another poster suggested to turn the nipple in his mouth and gently pull back..great idea. I use that all the time. Also, I sing gently to my babies, try to feed them when they are tired, push my finger against the nipple to coax it to drip milk out. The only bottles I like are Avent bottles. They are easy to clean, the nipples seem to be really soft and easy to suck.

Good luck...hang in there...your little one WILL eventually take the bottle, but remember, whoever is feeding him, stay calm.

My daughter did this, and we introduced bottles of breastmilk at two weeks of age. It took three weeks of me working before she finally took the bottle at four months of age. The type of bottle never made a difference. Here are some of the suggestions that were given to me:

Try a feeding position that isn't like nursing, such as sitting completely upright (this is what did it for our daughter)
Wrap the bottle in your nightgown for the scent.
Syringe feed.
Use a silicone nursing shield to acclimate him to the feeling of a nipple.
Put the nipple of the bottle upside down in the breastmilk for several hours before feeding to make it taste less like silicone and more like milk.

Good luck! I called lactation, pediatrician, and La Leche League to get new suggestions on what to do.

I am on my third exclusively breastfed child and it sounds to me like your son is just being stubborn. Have you tried giving him sippy cups? I hardly do bottles at all and then go straight to sippy cups and my kids take them just fine. My daughter is the same age as your son - I'll be weaning her in a month or so - and has been drinking out of sippy cups for maybe a couple of months already. Just a thought....