Need Help Getting Baby to Take a Bottle

Have you had someone else try to feed her. She is use to being held a certain way with you and it may be confusing to her when you try to give her a bottle. Let someone else feed her.

Hi W.,

My first suggestion is that if you are offering the bottle, leave that task to someone else. Babies often won't accept the bottle if they see/hear/smell mom - so leave the house and leave dad, grandma, a sitter in charge. It's best if the baby associates breastfeeding only with you.

When dad or someone else offers a bottle, I'd suggest that they make sure to warm the nipple - often when someone takes a bottle out of the fridge, they warm the bottle so the milk is warm but if the nipple is cold in their mouth, that's something they are not used to. I'd also suggest smearing a bit of the breastmilk on the nipple so baby instantly smells/tastes what they always eat and may be more receptive.

Good luck!

Hi W.,
What are you putting in the Bottle? Is it breast milk or formula? That might make a difference. Breast milk can be sored up to 3 months frozen. I use the platex nursing bottles n bags. They do make nipples that are recommended for babies 3 months or under. It is apretty scary expierence for the baby at first, its more of a security issue. Hang in there,the baby will come around. Note my husband always had an easier time getting the baby to take the bottle. K. B

aah not a whole lot you can do. stick to one bottle type - i used Avent, they are the closest to mommys breast. my son who is now 6 months took a bottle from my husband and mother for 3 months then stopped. He flat out refuses. I work part time and now he's on foods so thats easier but before, he just screamed. Ask your in laws to give her your expressed milk through a syringe into his mouth so at least she gets something into her little belly, thats what my mom had to do. It will take a little longer but at least she will get some milk. You'll get to leave the house sooner or later! Im finally out! Good luck and Merry christmas!

With my son it was easy, he was a little porker and he didnt care where his meals came from.
My daughter was slightly more picky. We used Avent bottles. It took her a bit to get used to them. I stuck with one brand, and eventually she got the hang of it. I felt if I kept switching brands, she would get even more confused.
I would hand baby and bottle over to my husband and leave the room. If I was around, she would want me and wouldnt even try the bottle. You can forget about her taking a bottle from me. That wasnt happening.
She never really did take to the bottle. She would accept it when she was really hungry and mom wasnt around. At 9 months, we switched her to a sippy cup. She hasnt seen a bottle since. Good Luck.

Did you try one of the new bottles made by Adiri? I had the same issue - but my daughter took the Adiri because it so closely resembles the breast.

My exclusively breast fed baby wouldn't take a bottle until she was 10-1/2 months old. We tried everything - all types of bottles, even the breast shaped bottle! What finally worked was Very Vanilla Soy Milk. It was the only thing she would tolerate in a bottle. Maybe give that a try and good luck!

W.. I had this problem with my son at 10 wks. I had to have someone else give him the bottle and I had to leave the room. This is what a book and a lactation consultant told me.
If the baby smells mommy she will want to have the physical attachment of nursing. HTH

Another thing to consider is the milk itself. If you're giving her breast milk in the bottle, it won't matter, but I had a hard time getting my daughter to take a bottle till I switched formulas a couple of times. It turns out she can't handle soy or dairy, so it was quite a trick. Good luck.

Hi W.-
I had the same trouble i couldn't go out for more than an hour or i had to take the baby with me. I did this for 5 months straight! My husband and i had to go to an overnight wedding so i had to get my daughter to take a bottle. I found this bottle called adiri, its supposed to be the closest thing to the breast and when you feel it you will agree. I tried it and on my first attempt my daughter took it from me. She has never given me a problem since. It was like a miracle. I tried every bottle out there and that cost me a fortune, this bottle is not cheap $12.50 but it worked so i didnt mind spending the money. The website is Adiri.com, if you check the testimonial page, they quote me there. I hope it works for you. Feel free to email me if you have any questions.
J.
____@____.com

Hi W.,
It's been a while since I was dealing with breastfeeding issues so I don't feel very helpful, but what about offering a bottle *after* your baby has nursed for a few minutes? Or even better, you leave the room and your husband offers it. Maybe if you take the edge of her hunger first, she'll be more willing to try a bottle.
Just a thought! Good luck.
D.

I also had the same trouble with my daughter when she was young. She wouldn't take a bottle of formula even with daddy and me elsewhere in the house. What worked was a bottle of breastmilk. If you are trying to get her to take formula then the next step after the bottle of breastmilk is mixing breastmilk and formula of mostly breastmilk and slowly changing the ratio. I know some people discourage that because if the baby doesn't finish the bottle you are throwing away precious breastmilk but at the time it was the only thing that would work for us. Good luck!

I too use the avent bottles when we do give our 5 month old a bottle, which is only when I am work. We had a head time also adjusting to the bottle when I did return back to work last month. We ended up running the nipple of the bottle under warm water, and he ended up taking it. Maybe becasue our breasts are warm?? Not sure, but that is the only way he takes the bottle still. As the other mom also mentioned, make sure it is your husband giving the bottle, not you. I even had to not be in the house, because he would only want me. So leave the house, and have your hubby give it a go. My Lac. consult also had us feed him the bottle kangaroo style, so it wasn't in breastfeeding "position". TO do this, sit the baby on hubby's lap facing outward, and give the bottle this way.

Good Luck!!

hi W.;

how about considering breastfeeding outside the house? it's very normal and gaining wide acceptance. with a little practice you can nurse discreetly with no one noticing at all. you would have to sit down somewhere to feed the baby anyway, right? i have nursed my two babies without ever using a bottle; my son, 2.5, nursed outside till about 6 months ago (now he nurses to sleep only or if he's feeling sick) and my daughter nurses outside once in a while but she's usually too nosey and busy to concentrate. but i have never had a problem with anyone looking at me.

i would highly reccommend looking up your local La Leche League Intl. chapter on the web and going to a meeting to discuss your questions, they are very helpful; if you don't like all thier advice, you can just use what you like and leave the rest. or just call your local LLLI chapter leader, i'm sure she will be happy to help you.

are you very sure that your baby has reflux? that's very unusual for a breastfed baby; if the baby only spits up when you try to use a bottle, it's because the bottle is not right for her, not because of reflux; breastfed babies pretty much never have that.

as far as your concert; maybe the baby doesn't have to have a bottle while you are out. how about if you nurse her right before you go, and if she gets hungry, have grandma feed her tiny teaspoons full of pureed prunes, pears, or a little baby cereal? true she will be on the young side for those things, but not unreasonably so; LLLI would say she is too young, but i started both my kids on "solids" as in soft fruit, when they were around 4 months, because they wanted it, and we had no problems at all. it might be enough to hold the baby over till you get back.

i just would urge you to avoid a bottle as long as possible, because especially before 6 months, you can get into "nipple confusion" where the baby ultimately prefers the bottle because the flow is faster and the have less work to do; the problem with this is that THEN they get reflux from eating too fast, and they spit it all up again; and it messes with your breastmilk supply because you can never gauge a good feeding. if i were you i would really try to stick to using the breast as much as possible; you're so lucky to be having a succssful nursing relationship with your baby as it is. Look at the World Health Organization site and the American Academy of Pediatrics to see the latest studies showing that breastfed babies are smarter, healthier, and stay slimmer in later life the more they nurse now.

good luck!

yeah I've been there, and there isn't much you can do if they refuse the bottle.If you leave for more than a few hours,it will put pressure on the baby to accept one, you just need to find someone willing to deal with an unhappy baby. It sounds rough but eventually it will happen. I have 3 children and I nursed all of them. My oldest nursed for 3 months, my middle nursed for a year and the baby for just over a year. Every child is different and you can only do what works for you. Good luck I know how you feel.

Jeanine