Need to Get 3 Month Old to Take the Bottle

Please be patient, hold her close like when you breastfeed, make sure the milk is warm and keep trying different nipples especially those with a wide base(wide like your breast). And try not giving her a pacifier, it may be confusing her. When she gets hungry enough...she WILL eat! Good luck mommy!!!

Mine never took the bottle. She went straight to a sippy cup. May just have to struglle until she can hold a sippy. Or try a sippy cup.

What bottles have you tried? All I can say is keep trying. Try different bottles until you find one that works. Go on mamasafe.com since BPA free bottles are an issue lately.

Hi M., I had to do the same with my 3 month old because I was going back to work. He refused the bottle so I finally decided to wean him. He finally got so hungry he took the bottle but it made for a miserable day that first day because he refused and cried A LOT! I just used your basic Gerber bottle after trying all of the others. Amazingly enough he is now 17 and is normal. I guess I did a few things right.

T. C.
Spa Girlfriend Parties
www.spaescapescottsdale.com

I agree with Lynn A.
Have someone else offer the bottle to your little girl.
Babies have an accute sense of smell and will detect if "nursing" is nearby.
We have had success with our nursing infants on the platex drop-ins with the latex nipple.
They're not as pretty as the clear silicone ones but seems to be softer and more manipulative like the breast.
(AS long as you know you do not have a little one who is sensitive to the latex)
HTH.
~D.

Hi M.,

I breastfed all three of my boys. They went from breast to cup. None of them would take a bottle from me. They did however take a bottle from my husband or their Grandparents when I was not in the room or even in the house! Try having someone else bottle feed while you are not there.

Good Luck.

Try having someone else feed her. She is expecting a specific feel from you. Give her the bottle first and touch it to her cheek and mouth area just like what would happen if she was looking for your breast.

My son never took them from me, but would take them from other people. Is it important taht she takes one from you? If not, I wouldn't worry about it. The Adiri natural nurser is great because it is shaped like a breast, is bisphenol-A free, and will not leech chemicals in to the milk you are giving her.

We tried to get our baby to take a bottle, and he refused. After thinking about it, we realized that there was no real reason why he needed to take a bottle, so we gave it up and let him nurse - which is healthier for all involved anyway. At 20 months, he is still nursing and has still never taken a bottle - and it's a great situation for us all! I highly recommend long-term breastfeeding.

Have you tried Dr. Brown's bottles? I have a 5 month old and started to try and give him a bottle at about the same time. He would not take any bottle until I finally tried Dr. Browns. Awesome!

My youngest didn't want the bottle either. I found some sippe cups at Babys R Us that worked well. They have a domed lid and do not have the rubber insert. I can't remember how old she was when we started using them, but I know it was befor six months.

Hope this helps.

You may want to try cup feeding. Here is a link with tons of info on alternative methods of feeding a baby: http://www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/alternative-feeding.html

I have heard of a nipple called "breastflow" that is supposed to closely imitate the let down of breastmilk, so you might want to try that. As far as getting out goes, I love being a member of MOMS Club. Look for your local chapter at www.momsclub.org

I've experienced what you're describing with both of my children. I just wasn't consistent enough in giving them a bottle (it's just easier to give them the boob instead of pumping) so they eventually wouldn't take the bottle any longer. So to fix it I had to become consistent again. What we did with my daughter was my husband (if it's me she would just want to nurse) would try to feed her an ounce of pumped milk in the morning when she would be the hungriest. She refused it, but he kept trying and we were consistent, which is key. It took a little over a week of him trying to give her the bottle every morning, and she gradually would start sucking a little, and now she'll take the bottle. I sometimes put juice in a bottle too, to make it yummy and motivating (but my daughter is a little older than yours). Now that she'll take a bottle I'll just continue to give her a bottle of water, juice, or milk a few times a week to keep her used to it. Try expressing a little milk from the bottle into her mouth so he realizes what's in it.

What worked for my son was we were on a road trip so he had to take the bottle. He refused it for several hours, but finally gave in and took the bottle after I first got him latched on to me, then slipped the bottle nipple in once he was already sucking. Every time he realized and pulled away, I would repeat it until he just accepted the bottle. After that road trip I made sure to feed him a bottle a few times a week to keep him used to it. Consistency really pays off. It can be tedious, but if you really want your baby to take a bottle, just keep trying on a regular basis. Only you can decide if it's worth the effort. I just got tired of feeling like I could never leave my children without completely coordinating around their feeding times and rushing back to nurse them.

Hi M., I have been breastfeeding and bottlefeeding for the last 2 and a half months with Avent bottles. They are shaped significantly different from other bottles. Hopefully those will work for your little one. Good luck.

Hey M.,
I have a five month old that is the same way. I have tried a lot of bottles and the one I finally got her to take is the BreastFlow bottle. It is amazing. I have only found it at Babies R U but Target is suppose to carry them as well (I have never been able to find them there). The bottle actually has a large really soft outter nipple and a harder smaller nipple inside of that. My daughter does the same thing with playing and chewing on other bottles but that one she usually gets latched on to. It is the only one that she has actually drank out of. She has been good at breastfeeding and actually doesn't like to take the bottle from any one else so I usually have to feed it to her. Hope this helps! Good Luck ~ B.

You need to have her hungry and have someone besides yourself give her the bottle. She can smell you and knows that milk comes from mom. So have dad give her a bottle with you in the other room. At some point she will be hungry enough no matter what she will learn to take a bottle.

try putting the bottle nipple on your breast when you breastfeed. enough suction will draw out your milk. you might have to try every nipple brand out there.

Have you tried an Adiri bottle? Check it out: www.adiri.com

My daughter never took a bottle either - then it took me 6 months to wean her off me. With my 2nd I was more determined to not have it happen again. I tried all sorts of bottles & nipples & changing just simply does not work if you have a child that knows what they want (I don't believe in nipple confusion - they know what nipple they want ;). What I would do is - make sure she's very hungry & leave her with grandma or dad (or someone that will have the needed patience) & let them feed her. The hungrier she is, the more likely she'll cave to the bottle. You might have to do this daily for a while, but be consistent & stick to your guns. It is heart breaking to hear them cry when you know how easy it is to stop, so that is why I left - so *I* couldn't cave. The sooner you start this process the better! Good Luck!!!

try the orthapedic nipple, the brown latex one, it work for me, also theres a funny looking bottle at onestepahead.com , it looks like a breast, it's kind of pricy, 12.95 each.i would try the orthapedic nipple first,there in most nipple sections at most stores, hope that helps

Hi M.,

I am going through the same thing with my almost 6 month old. I tried 9 different bottles and nipples and she wouldn't take any of them. This past week I found a bottle at babies 'r' us that i have never seen before called a "Breast Flow" bottle by The First Years. My daughter took it instantly and has continued to take it once a day since I bought it (4 days in a row now!!). I mentioned it to a friend who was having the same issues and they went out that night and got one and it worked for them as well. The nipple is different from every other kind out there - it's a soft nipple shell that's completely flexible so they can use the same latch that they use with breast feeding. The shell fits around another nipple that is more solid silicone and similar to what other bottle nipples are made of and causes the compression mechanism similar to breast feeding.

I understand not wanting to try every bottle out there as it's really expensive - but this one may be worth a shot. Here's the product information if you would like to check it out. http://www.learningcurve.com/product/detail/Y1129A2

Good luck! I know how frustrating it can be when you would like a little independence but can't get it!!

who is giving her the bottle? It is best if Dad does, and you aren't even near. She associates your scent as her food source.

Both my girls would switch between bottle and breast, no problem, but it didn't start that way. The first day or two at daycare after a holiday break or when I went back to work, they would boycott the bottle, but when they realized mom wasn't coming, and it was bottle or starve they would eat.

Try different nipples, what works for one, doesn't work for all. Also, if you have to, try a soft spouted sippy cup.

Good luck!

The same thing happened with my baby - she is now five months old. At three months, I went back to work and really needed her to take the bottle. I pumped and left milk for her, tried having dad feed her, I tried feeding her, we tried different positions - but she still would not take it. We tried every different bottle we could find and she still would not take it and mostly just bit on the nipple too. My baby did the same thing with the pacifier as your baby. My suggestion is to save your money and not buy all the different bottles/nipples. Now my baby is sort of taking the bottle - it takes a really long time to get her to drink from it though, and we have to pause frequently, take the bottle out of her mouth and then put it back in. It just takes time. I think my baby will never really like the bottle. But, the good thing is she is loving her rice cereal and anyone can feed her that! I hope you find a good solution for you and your baby.

M., if you contact your local chapter of LaLecheLeague, they will be able to give you advice. Don't be intimidated! Years ago, LLL had the image of being incense-burning, granola-making moms that breast-fed their kids until they were practically in kindergarten. This is simply not the case. They are ordinary moms like you and I, trying to help each other out by sharing their experiences.