2 Mon Old Won't Take a Bottle

Sorry I don't really have any other solutions, but I wanted you to know you're not alone. We tried with my daughter started at one month, she's now 4 months and still won't take it. Lucky for me, I'm home with her, but it would be nice if my husband could feed her too. She recently has shown an interest in water bottles, she will take it out of my hands and bring it to her mouth herself. So today I went out and bought sippy cups with handles, I'm thinking of skipping the bottle and going sraight to cups.
The one thing my ped told me was to try another fluid in the bottle, meaning water or formula. I didn't do this cuz I don't want her to have formula, that's why I'm trying the sippy cup.

Good luck!

Just a month ago I was in the same place. We had been trying for weeks to get my 3 month old to take a bottle. Like you we tried many different people offering it and many, many different bottles and nipples (Avent, Adiri, Playtex, Dr. Browns, Medela, Evenflo Comfort Select, Nuk standard and wide base, and MAM), pretty much anything I could find that would work with a BPA free bottle option. I felt like I had a full bottle aisle next to the kitchen sink. Finally at 4 months it came time for me to go back to work. I felt horrible leaving when I knew she wouldn't be getting full feedings during the day. She would get only about 1/2 oz -1 oz out after an hour of trying, and most of that was actually just dribbling out the side of her mouth. She would then nurse like crazy all night to make up for it. Not great to go back to getting no sleep when I now I needed to get up for work. Finally after about 2 weeks she started taking one bottle late in the afternoon, then a couple days later she was taking 3, 5 oz bottles each day while I was gone. I think she just finally got hungry enough during the day and realized the situation wasn't going to change. Actually the first couple days she finally took the bottle well we almost had another issue because then she seemed impatient with the real thing in the evening, but she now she successfully goes back and forth between breast and bottle as needed. So hang in there, I bet she'll get there. Just have whoever cares for her during the day really stick with it. As far as all the bottle/nipple options we had some success with the Nuk wide base version and the Adiri but ultimately found the MAM slow flow nipples and bottles to work best for her and us. I feel your pain and wish you luck.

I had the same issue with my son and I tried changing bottles. Then my ped told me to try warming the nipple and it worked!! Good luck!

This happened to me when my daughter was 5 months old. The only thing that worked for me was ME giving her the bottle. She was used to the "Mommytime". I know they say dont, but try.

Need any help or support I am here!!!

H.

We worked with my son for weeks before I went back to work. It is very frustrating. I know that a baby will eat from just about anything when they are hungry enough.

That said, my suggestion to you I'm sure you will not like. When you come home you need to not be around the baby and pump so that someone else, even at night, is giving her the bottle. I know this will be harder on you. Once she is okay with taking the bottle you can go back to nursing and it will help during the day.

I'm not a doctor. Check with your doctor first but if she's just waiting for you, you might need to take you out of the equation until she takes/is comfortable with the bottle.

T., try the Adiri bottles. They're expensive but very much like a real breast. My newborn will take it and I mainly breastfeed. Good luck

T.:

if you check the archives this has been written about... I see this a lot in my practice...

the issue is why won't she take the bottle and then also looking at alternatives..

you are welcome to call to discuss this with me.

P., RLC, IBCLC
Breastfeeding and Parenting Solutions

My daughter did the same thing. I did work close enough that I could drive to daycare to nurse her on my lunch hour b/c she would go all day without drinking from a bottle and then would be up all night nursing trying to make up for it. I did buy every bottle on the market as well. No luck. It does get easier. I tried a sippy cup very early with her. Once she is 5 months try cereal very diluted with breast milk so she gets something through the day. Hang in there, before you know it she will not be nursing anymore and off to preschool like mine.

My sister has worked in the infant room of a daycare for about 7 years now, and has run into a number of breastfeed babies who refuse to take a bottle. She swears by the Adiri bottle... I know you've tried many other bottles/nipples, but you may want to look this up online and check it out. Hope this helps. Hang in there!!!

I have a 3 1/2 month old who is doing the same thing. We've tried every bottle imaginable. For a while, she would take about an ounce from the adiri bottle (adiri.com). We call it the "booby bottle" because it's shaped very much like a breast :). We even went to a lactation consultant who tried different ways to feed her (finger feeding, cup feeding, etc.) It didn't work for my daughter, but it could work for yours- we went to one at the hospital where I gave birth, but I think you can find a consultant through la leche league. The consultant did tell me that it becomes harder to give a baby a bottle around 3 months because they begin to make the choice of whether or not to suck rather than going on a reflex. Our sitter finally tried feeding our baby with an eye dropper, and she will take some milk that way. I work full-time, and she takes around 8oz with the dropper while I'm gone. Then she eats like crazy all night long. I know how hard this is because I'm going through it too, but one thing I've learned through all of my research on it is that it seems to happen with lots of babies, and they all seem to do ok! Good luck, and if you find something that works, please let me know!

I hope some of these suggestions work for you. My son was the same way and never did take a bottle. He was strictly breast and that was it. It made me a bit of a slave to him, until he was old enough for sippy cups and such. Maybe changing the type of nipple is just confusing her further? Good luck, I know this is extremely frustrating.

My daughter did this for a few days also! Ohhhhhh my poor hubby was so devastated when it happened since he had been waiting for months to feed her! What I finally did was sleep for a few nights with a blanket of hers and when he would feed her he would drape that over the side her head was on and she could smell me and he also had to put a small pillow under her for the extra padding my hubby does not have (dang him lol) that I do! Worked like a charm for us and I hope it does for you also!
Many blessings to you and yours!

My oldest was very much like yours.My hubby hadn't been exposed to babies much and I don't think he was real comfortable with her which she knew. She would nurse on my way to work and if she was real fussy,he would bring her out for lunch for a session of nursing and then they would pick me up from work. I thought it was hard on her but if that's what she wanted to do........she made it tho and eventually learned to drink out of a straw and a glass at a fairly early age. Needless to say,she is now a mother herself and 25 so it didn't cramp her too much. I am sure the time period was about the same as yours as I only stayed off the normal allowed amount of time. I would NOT keep buying different bottles...that could really get to be expensive!!!! Eventually she will give in and take one of the bottles and or nipples you have purchased. GOOD LUCK!!! Little ones with minds of their own can really give you a run for your money!!!! J.

Here are some ideas that may help;
Have someone else offer the bottle. Two things might work, and they are opposites so please try both. The first is that the person offering the bottle can make it as much like nursing as possible by holding the baby in a similar way and having one of your "mom smell" tee shirts near by. Providing skin to skin contact helps too. Make sure not to put the nipple directly into the babby mouth, instead making the baby "work" to get it, the way baby "works" to achive latch.
If that fails, it may be that you want it to be a totally different situation giving a bottle for it to work. Have a "substitute" carer put the baby in a front facing carrier and give the bottle, putting it right in babies mouth the way you normally would with a bottle. In either case, mom might not want to be in the room, as baby will probably be going for the breast.
If possible, try and nurse on your lunch if time will allow. Pump during breaks to keep supply up, nurse often when home, and keep up the good work momma! You are doing a wonderful thing for your little one! Message me if you have any questions.

I had the same problem with my second son, but we just kept trying. Our doctor told us the same thing, and eventually he just started drinking out of the bottle. It takes time but they will adjust. I know it is hard but if she is starving she will eventually eat. Hope this helps.

My 4 month old daughter is doing the same thing. Starting at about 2 months old, we would give her a bottle a few times a week b/c I decided to get another Master's degree. She use to take the bottle, but didn't like it. Two weeks before I went back to work she totally refused to take the bottle. It has been three weeks now and we still have had no success. We have been trying the bottle daily...mainly adiri and breast flow. She complains the least when I try to feed her with the bottle which suprised me. Anyway, with such little success I have been coming home at lunch then right back home after work to feed her. She has been going 4-4.5 hours in between feedings. GOOD LUCK!!!

T.,

I have no solutions but thought you'd be comforted to know I'm in the SAME BOAT! My almost 2 month old will not take a bottle. I'm on brand #3... we're trying the Adiri nursers and she'll at least let it touch her mouth without screaming. But she won't suck at all. My husband used a small medicine cup to feed her last sunday while I was gone. But I'm returning to work soon too and I'm freaking out. We didn't have this issue with our son at all. He took the first bottle we gave him no problem.... good luck!

Have you tried the Adiri nursing bottle? It's shaped like a breast and suppose to be an easier transition. What about cup or syringe feeding her. My 5 month old won't take a bottle and my 2 1/2 year old never did, so if I needed to leave them, I would leave a syringe (like from walgreens pharmacy) and have someone feed her that way, because otherwise they refuse to eat.
Good luck!

We've had some challenges getting my 11 week old daughter to take one too. We tried lots of bottles - most of them are too fast-flow for breastfed babies. We ended up having some luck with the Born Free bottles but I could be nowhere near her, she's picky about the temperature, and she has to be quite hungry. I agree to keep trying. We finally got her to take it when I pumped 1 oz of milk, put it in a bottle, handed it to my husband, hid in the bedroom, and had him feed her when she was quite hungry and the milk was very fresh. We also tried to get her to take the bottle at nearly every feeding. As soon as she seemed hungry I'd leave and have my husband try to feed her. We'd give it maybe 30 minutes of trying and then I'd make an appearance and nurse her.

Now that we've got her eating from a bottle (which she still doesn't much like) I've made an effort to get her a bottle at least weekly because I NEED to know that she'll take one while I'm gone. It's really stressful isn't it? My son started refusing them at 7 months and we were never able to get him back on, so I've been there done that, and hope to not repeat the experience. Good luck!

My daughter never took a bottle, until after about a week in the daycare. We used the Playtex bottles with Drop-ins and breast milk. The first couple of weeks, I went to the daycare and nursed her during my lunch break. It was more for my sake, and she didn't take much from the bottle otherwise, but I think it helped her make the adjustment to the daycare, and THEN when I stopped she could at least feel comfortable with where she was at, and work on taking the bottle. I don't know if that's really why it worked, but I have heard that you should try to introduce only one change at a time, and I do believe it's important for your child to feel secure before moving on to a new thing. By the way, she got to be so comfortable with the bottle, in the end, that she weaned herself around 8 months old, even though I was planning to nurse while I had her at home, for a year.

Hi T.. We had this exact same problem with my daughter. She would get violently upset when someone tried to give her a bottle. I ended up being the one to get her to take it. One weekend I did nothing but offer her a bottle. It was hard on both of us, there were plenty of tears shed (hers and mine) but in my situation it was crucial. I was going to be in the hospital for a few days and she was going to have nothing but bottles. It definitely worked. The ONLY bottle I got her to take was this one http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BK8RHM
The First Years Breast Flow. She loved this bottle because it is very much like breastfeeding in that the nipple is in 2 pieces, so the baby has to draw the milk into the first valve and then keep sucking to finally get it out of the nipple. I wish you the best of luck...I know how hard this is!!!!!!

My sister wnet thru this also. She found that if she fed her son while in his car seat or bouncie seat he would take the bottle. He couldn't be held while having a bottle.

You want to make sure the dcp is warming the milk enough. Babies usually prefer fresh bm over the thawed. Try giving her fresh whenever possible (pumped within the last week). My daughter would only take the bottle while the person was holding her facing out. If they tried to hold her in the cradle hold, she would not take the bottle. Or, they could try feeding her from a bouncy chair, as well. Keep trying, she will get the hang of things soon. I am sorry you are having such a tough transition. :(

We used the Playtex nurser. She preferred the latex (brown) nipples, but also took silicone.

Hi T.. We had almost the same thing. Perhaps others have suggested this, but once my husband made the milk warmer, my daughter took it. That seemed to be the key for us. I know he said it was significantly warmer than he was thinking it would be. hope this helps.

I have a day care home and once cared for a little infant girl who would not take the bottle. It lasted for two full days as I remember and on the third day she finally gave in and took it. The good news is that you have a very determined little girl on your hands, a trait that she will have all of her life. Be prepared for her to be inflexible so don't expect her to go along with things "la de dah" but learn how to make changes slowly. Since she has already gone past the two days I experienced with my little girl, all we can say is what your doctor said, keep trying. Is your day care person up to this? How determined is she? She could try swadling your little one and getting her very calm and then slowly putting the nipple in her mouth with some milk already on it. Or how about drop by drop with a dropper meant to give medicine to infants. She, of course, would start with that and then swiftly switch to a bottle with milk on the nipple. Also, the stream of milk might be too fast or too slow compared with you, so adjust the nipple holes accordingly. If you're not aware, the early ones have one small hole and then as the baby ages they increase to 2 and 3 holes. Does she gag a little when you nurse her, then you are probably putting out a stron stream. If she sucks really hard and even gets whitish lips by the end of the feeding, then your stream is slow. Good luck and she will not starve.

All I can say is you aren't alone. My now 7 month old began refusing the bottle at 3 months. We tried everything and no success. I have given up at this point and she does drink from a sippy cup,so we will be trying to put the breastmilk in there. I can't go anywhere with out her for more than 2 hours. I've kinda given up to the fact that I will be around her at almost all times until she is weaned. 5-6 more months to go! Good luck to you.

When I went back full-time to work my daughter wouldn't take the bottle either. I tried lots of bottles and the one that worked for her was the Playtex bottle for breastfed babies. I pumped breastmilk so she had enough during the day. I would nurse her in the morning before work, at lunchtime, and in the evening when I got home. The daycare had a lot of problems, but eventually she took to the bottle because she would get hungry.