How Do I Get My Baby to Take a Bottle?

Oh Jen im sorry to say but some babies will just never take a bottle. My son is 10 1/2 months old and NEVER EVER took a bottle. It was tough at times, we tried everything and nothing worked. Can you continue to nurse? at least at 5/6 months you can start feeding baby food and not nurse as often. I actually have to mix 4 oz of milk into cereal with each of his meals because he doesnt nurse enough...one thing i can say is dont switch bottles, be consistent with just one, Avent is good and believe it or not Nuby which you can buy in Walmart is good for 5 months and older. Good luck!!

I had the same issue with my daughter who was completely breast fed. She never took to a bottle but DID take to a cup as soon as she was able to sit up. Which in her case was bolstered in a high chair at about 5 months. Maybe that would work for you too.

Do you need her to take teh bottle becasue you won't be around? If its a necessity get ready for a fight :-) My daughter never did take it even when I worked part time, leaving a four month old with her Daddy at about 4pm and returning at 1am. She would go hungry!
my son for the longest time only took it from his sister ( a couple of years older) while he sat in his bouncy seat. Then we were slowly able to chang it so Dad fed him in his bouncy seat. For him- the bottle was a necessity so this strange idea of having a 2 year old feed her brother in the bouncy seat worked for us! My daughter we keep trying but after three months we moved, so the battle was no longer necessary as now she was starting some foods, so others could feed her. Good Luck- it can be done but they do have a mind of their own!

Try different bottles that are more similar to your breast. I used Avent which was fantastic. Check to make sure you are using the right sized nipple for the bottle too - the baby might have to work too hard to get the milk form the bottle and is turned off by it. ALso make sure you are holding her in a similar manner as when you nurse her that way it isn't all that different.

Good luck and be patient...she can sense your frustration and might get edgey too!

Hi Jen- I breastfed my son for 9 months...but we introduced a bottle early on..around 3 weeks.WE gave one bottle a day and I would pump that feeding. Around 4 months...He refused the bottle for some reason and we ended up trying a couple different bottles and nipples to see if he preferred them. He still didn't want to take it. So One weekend...all we did was feed him from the bottle and I pump the whole weekend...My husband fed him...and he finally took it! It was hard and he was stubborn..but we were more determined. It was Very important for me that he be able to take a bottle so that...We could have some time away when we could. We really enjoyed our date nights and I wasn't about to give them up!

Try to see if she prefers other bottles...maybe the nipples will be more like yours and she won't mind it. You can also mix breast milk and formula together...sometimes this helps with the transition.

Hope this helps!

Good luck-

J. L

Hi Jen---I'd really recommend the Born Free bottles and nipples. The nipples are the closest to the real thing that I've seen. My twins were being exclusively bottle fed (pumped milk) for 3 months, we had a lot of issues nursing. After about 2 months using the Born Free nipples, she took to my breast like it was the most natural thing in the world. I'd highly recommend them. PLUS--you have the added benefit of the plastics being bisphenol free.
Also re: formula---we use Earth's Best Organic.
Good luck!

I never went through that so here is what I have heard from friends who have. Try having someone else give the baby a bottle and you "disapear" during the attemps. With the thing she wants the most, breast milk, so close why should she have a rubber nipple when the real one is so close! A.