How Many Ounces to Feed Breastfed Baby When Pumping for the First Time?

Offer 1 ounce at a time and allow 15 minutes before gauging if baby needs another ounce. Bottles force feed babies more than their tummy and suckling of the breast would allow since nipples on bottles are free flowing. If you fill up an ice cube tray with breastmilk and thaw one cube at a time... each cube is 1 ounce.

Hi E.,

You actually CAN measure how much he eats.

Do you have a baby scale at your house? (If not your hubby can stand in for one on your regular scale).

You weigh the baby.
You feed the baby.
You weigh the baby.

The difference in the two weights in the amount the baby ate!!!!!

My lactation consultant did this with me when we were trying to figure out how much my daughter ate.

If you don't have a baby scale you can use your regular scale (if it calculates to the ounce). You weigh your hubby. Feed the baby. Weigh your hubby holding the baby.
(Note: you can't do this yourself... cuz the amount you lose is the amount your baby gains and it would even itsself out if you were holding the baby who just ate what you lost!!!!!!).

Have fun on your nite out!!!!!!

... okay, so WILL he take a bottle?
Some babies will NOT.

I would, have several 2-3 ounce bottles.
Teach the person feeding him, how to thaw it.
And burp him.
And to always.... feed ON-demand... not according to a schedule.
Infants need to do this.

My baby is 7 weeks and has had a few bottles of pumped milk since 3 weeks so hubby and I could catch dinner, a movie and a concert- I would say 3 oz per bottle will probably be ok...with an extra oz in reserve if baby is still hungry...bottles should be fed 2-3 hrs apart but on demand when baby is exhibiting hunger cues. When we went to see the concert, I had four 3 oz bottles ready, baby ate every 2 hrs on demand and finished 2 bottles while leaving half an oz in the others. My breastfed other babies never went past 5.5 or 6 oz per bottle even at 12 mos. I always felt that they got more directly from me than they would take from the bottle and pumping yield did not equate to what they were eating. Pump usually yields one letdown but babies typically trigger multiple during a nursing session. Have fun!

Package the milk up in 2-4 ounce bags...until you figure out 'normal' for your wee one... and just keep offering it until he doesn't want any more. Some newborns can only take 2 or 3 ounces. Some take 8-12. Others take up to 20.

We were part of a nursing study, and my son was weighed (with super spiffy electronic baby scales that went down to some very very small numbers) before eating and after. At 3 weeks old the least he nursed was 19oz, and the most was 22 (in one sitting). Over the next 9 mo, he consistently ate apx 20oz per feeding. We were the outliers in the nursing study, with only 2 or 3 other babies eating as much as he did (out of several hundred). Most ate 6-9oz per feeding.

((And no. He didn't go for longer periods than other babies between feedings. Two hours later, he'd eat again.))

But for feeding on demand, you just keep giving them milk until they won't take anymore.

Most newborns usually 2-4 ounces is enough. I struggled with milk supply and hated to waste any breastmilk. So the baby was offered 2 oz and when it was done got 1 more, if that was finished, 1 more oz. We just upped the starting amount as the babies grew. Thawed breastmilk is fine in the fridge up to 24 hours. Fresh breastmilk will keep in the fridge longer but I forget the time recommended.

2ounces every 2 hours dear.. yes, pump the same time you feed him.. remember frozen milk should be consumed within 24 hours.. when thawed consumed within an hour...

it's been a while since I've breast and bottle fed - oh wait!!! CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!

Okay - back - when I breast fed and gave the pumped bottle to hubby - my boys ate until they were full - both would push the bottle away when they were full - or needed to be burped...I guess I was lucky....my daughter? would drink to her hearts content...she's now 25...so it goes back a LONG way!! :)

I would pump until the milk doesn't come out anymore - that's how it worked for me...I know that every BODY is different...so you need to follow what works for you...

I don't know how many ounces my kids had from the breast - never had a monitor! :) which I could have been able to do that....

HAVE A GREAT TIME with your GF!!!
CONGRATS on your baby!!
CONGRATS on breast feeding!!

This will vary by baby. When my twins were three weeks old they were eating two ounces per feeding. My daughter is three weeks old and she just ate four ounces per feeding of breastmilk. Offer what he'll eat. You won't know until he drinks a bottle of milk. The amount you collect now really isn't a good indicator of what he's eating. I pumped this morning and collected 10 ounces, which I know she doesn't eat in one feeding!

I haven't read the other comments but, check to see if he will take a bottle. My daughter took it no problem when I went back to work at 7 weeks and never even thought of making sure she would take it. That could have been a disaster.
Now about ounces. My daughter has ate 4 oz of breast milk that I have pumped since I went back to work. I have a few 5oz bottles froze for when she is going through a growth spurt. She is 7months today and drinks 4 oz for her two bottles while I am at work. She is very content with those 4oz's. Some babies though want more. It really is going to depend on how much he wants. I would freeze in 2oz bags and thaw out a couple for that day or if you need more you can always just pull out of the freezer and put under warm water if he is screaming for more.
The babies are much more efficient getting milk out then those darn pumps. Even if it is a really great pump like Medela. So I wouldn't assume that if you pump for 15 minutes that's how much he drinks. Also pumping I think for more than 15 minutes anyway can confuse your breast at least thats what my LC told me.