My Son Hates Sippy Cups!

Updated on November 10, 2006
M.B. asks from North Canton, OH
27 answers

Hi everyone! My son is 12 months old, and he refuses to use a sippy cup - he's almost completely weaned off of the bottle (he still takes 1 just before bed and if he wakes up during the night) but he's refused sippy cups since he was six months old! If we hold it for him and give him sips without the lid, then he'll take a little bit, but he refuses to suck on the cup with the lid on. I'm worried about dehydration...has anyone else had this problem? Although he was a preemie, he's devolopmentally normal - he's just very stubborn when it comes to drinking from a cup!

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C.C.

answers from Youngstown on

Hi!
I had the same problem with my son around that age. I had to use a soft tip one at first and when he got used to those I started using the hard ones. It took him a little while but now he loves his sippy. Well good luck!

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T.L.

answers from Youngstown on

I do day care and i have a little guy who hated sippy cups also...so I went to wal mart and they have these sippy cups with a soft nipple like lid.....he can chew on it and suck on it and he is now 14 months old and completely off the bottle.

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J.H.

answers from Columbus on

Have you tried "Nuby" cups? You can find them anywhere, and they're pretty cheap. I know for a fact that they are at Walmart, so I would start there.

My daughter loved them and so did the little boys that were her age. The top is very soft, sort of like a bottle, so it's a great transition.

Just be patient =) Transitions normally take time. If there are other little boys and girls around the area, it might also be helpful if he watched them drink from cupies, too. Sometimes thats the best way to teach them.

Good Luck!

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E.A.

answers from Toledo on

When he was little, my bro-in-law wouldn't drink out of a cup either, so my hubby suggested cut a bigger hole in the bottle nipple and put a straw in. This worked for a while, and then he went straight to a cup with a straw and didn't even notice it was different.

problem was, he was old enough that one day he told my mom-in-law "i want a bottle - with a nipple on it!" (lol)

my son won't drink out of straws - he only wants his sippy or a cup w/out a lid. i guess everyone's different! good luck!

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S.G.

answers from Cleveland on

I have two suggestions. First, have you tried a soft tip sippy cup like Avent? It is more like a nipple on a bottle instead of hard plastic. My next suggestion is the straw-type sippy cups. I had a friend who's son didn't get the concept of tilting the cup up and would get frustrated, but he could suck out of a straw no problem! good luck!

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L.F.

answers from Canton on

My daughter was the same way! We finally just gave up the bottle, only let her have sippy cups. For about a week she would just throw them at us and not drink much-then she gave in, now she just turned 3 and she won't drink out of just a cup, it is all a challenge:) If you want him to just have a sippy-then just offer that. He will come around.

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A.P.

answers from Cincinnati on

There are some sippy cups that have the soft top almost like the nipple of a bottle. I have seen them at Family Dollar and that is where I used to get them from my son when he was using a sippy cup. They worked great transitioning from bottle to hard top sippy cup. I have not seen them anywhere else but Family Dollar, I know Walmart has something with a "softer" top but it is not the same.

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S.B.

answers from Cleveland on

try one of those sippy cups with the soft top...i think they are great.

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E.

answers from Cincinnati on

Have you tried to just go to the plastic straws and holders that snap on a cup? Unfortunately i don't have much experience with this myself, but my sister has a 2 year old and she said she totally bypassed the sippy cup and went straight to the straw. That seemed to work really well for her and her daughter. good luck,

E. :)

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P.J.

answers from Columbus on

I would try a straw that might help. Good luck

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N.B.

answers from Cleveland on

Hello! I have a three year old but try this, purchase a sippy cup with a straw. when u drink, drink with a straw more than likely he'll do the same, it worked for my little guy. Normal sippy cups are kind of hard and don't give in to the sucking motion unlike a bottle. a straw will make him feel like a big boy.

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C.E.

answers from Columbus on

M.
HAve you tried using the cups with straws?

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C.B.

answers from Cleveland on

Hi M.,

My son was the same way with the sippy cups. We tried several different types of cups and finally had luck with the Playtex sippy cups. We also picked one weekend where we put away all of the bottles and only gave him a sippy cup. I won't lie, it was a looooooong weekend, but by 3-4 days into it, he drank
from the cup without any trouble. Hope this helps!

C.

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A.P.

answers from Cleveland on

My now almsot 3 year old son had the same problem. We tried every sippy cup out there, finally we found really cheap cups at walmart that have a silicone sippy on it. And he seems to do really well with those right away. They are almost like a bottle but it is a sippy cup. We also did the sports bottles with the straws but he only took to those a little while. The only advice that I can say is don't give up. When he is ready he will take the sippy cup or straw, just like walking and talking when he was ready he did it. Also i have found out that if there are other kids around doing it he is probably going to be more likely to do it, my son has learned so much that i have been trying to teach him for a while now almost overnight from the kids at the babysitter. Just don't get frustrated and keep at it. He will eventually take the sippy cup. Good luck

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J.

answers from Cleveland on

Have you tried the cups that have straws? Some kids don't like the sippy cup tip but like to suck on the straw. The biggest thing to teach them is to keep the cup down, they don't need to tip it like a bottle or sippy cup. Just an idea.

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C.F.

answers from Rochester on

My daughter is 12 months old and also hates sippy cups! She'll take a few sips, but then she'll play with it or throw it on the floor. If I help her hold it, she'll drink it just fine. She turns the regular (non-straw) Playtex ones upside down, and they require too much suction to get anything out, so they don't work for her even without the valves. I've tried the cheap Toss 'N Go cups, and they work pretty well. The Nuby sippy cups are also good, because they at least have a soft top. My daughter likes to chew on them, though. Some kids like the sippy cups with the straws in them, so you may want to try that. I tried one of the Parent's Choice cups from Walmart, and it leaked like crazy, so I took it back. So far the Nuby cups have been the best for her, but I think I am going to try one of the ones with a straw in it and see how she does. They also have Nuby cups with the handles, which may help him. I still give her a bottle at night, too, and just hold the sippy cup for her if she isn't drinking enough. It has gotten better in the past 3 weeks, so there is definitely hope for him, too! I also try to offer a variety of things to her- juice, water, milk, frequently through the day. Don't feel bad about slipping a bottle in there during the day or in the morning until he starts getting the hang of it. I think drinking from the sippy cup is just like all of the other developmental milestones- each kid hits them at their own pace, on their own timing. He'll figure it out when he is ready. Good luck!

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K.N.

answers from Columbus on

My daughter took awhile to get use to sippy cups as well. I got her a few kids sports bottles that had a retractable straw and that worked better. Give that a try and see if he likes that.

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T.

answers from Cincinnati on

My Daughter who will be 1 this friday was the same way. She refused the sippy cup. One day i tried giving her something from a straw while we were out and she sipped threw that. Maybe you can try using the straw. I think she liked that because she saw me using a straw. So now we just buy the sippy cups with straws. She is still getting her bottle in the morning and at night but she using the straw cups the rest of the day. Hope

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T.S.

answers from Cincinnati on

Hello M.,
I feel your frustration! We started my daughter an sippys at 9m old and she HATED them! I tried to call it the big girl cup. I tried to show her "mommy" useing it. I tried to play games, nothing worked. Then a friend suggested I try the Nuby brand sippy. Have you seen these? You can get them at walmart. They have a silicone top. Almost like a bottle. She used these for like a month no problem.Then i went to the avent (also soft). Finally in the last couple of weeks she drinks from a regular (hard top like playtex) sippy! YEA!!!!
Also what are you putting in the sippy? Formula, whole milk, juice,h2o,or all of these? I found if your doing the milk or formula to warm just to take the chill off.
Good Luck :)
PS My daughter was a preemie to with no probs also, wonder if thats just a coincidence?

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L.F.

answers from Youngstown on

Have you tried the sippy cups that have characters on them? They have regular cups and cups with straws. They're made by Munchkin & they're spill proof. That's the only way I could get my daughter to use one. Hopes this helps!

L., 1 daughter, Jenna-- 3 1/2

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D.M.

answers from Youngstown on

Hi M.!
Have you tried the sippy cups that have the straws in them instead of the little "lip"? My grandson was also a preemie. He was completely breastfed until around 5 months of age, when his Mommy started introducing baby food into his diet. At that time, her Pediatrician told her she should start getting him "used to" a sippy cup. Like your child, he absolutely refused to drink from one. Eventually my daughter-in-law found that he could drink from a straw, so she tried the sippy cups with the straws and he loves them.
The only other thing I can tell you is this: not one of my four children would drink from a sippy cup when they were babies. Sure, when they were 4 they thought they were great! Anyhow, I just put a small amount in a cup and held it for them until they could hold it themselves, then once they could hold it (and were walking steadily), I would just pour about half an inch in the cup at a time. Don't worry about them getting dehydrated, when they are thirsty they will drink! As a stay at home Mom you have the advantage of having time to do tedious things like this with your child--as a Mom who has lost 2 children in her lifetime trust me when I tell you that you have to enjoy EVERY single minute with your child!
Goodluck!
D. M

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J.R.

answers from Cincinnati on

My son hate sippy cups as well. He loved straws though. I found the playtex sports cups with the straw were great. I absolutely loved them. Good luck!!!!

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E.J.

answers from Cincinnati on

There are two things that i can think of that could be the reason why he doesn't want to drink out of sippy cups. First, it could be because he see you guys drinking out of regular cups and he wants to do the same. Or two may be that the top on the cup is to hard for him. They have these cups called Nubys and the top to the cup are like the nipples from the bottles. Give those a try and see if he likes them any better. Let me know if this helps.

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K.L.

answers from Cleveland on

Don't sweat it, if he drinks for you and you offer it often then he'll be hydrated well. Some kids don't take to sippy cups well. My oldest fought us a while, but accepted them for trips to the store or Dr.'s office, you know car rides. My youngest took them well, and on his own.
My neice hated them.........I thnk it just depends on the child.
If you're really worried, ask the pediatrician you see. He or she may have advice on what to do. But as long as the bottle is being weened, I think you're ok!

Good luck

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T.B.

answers from Tampa on

My son was the same way. I would just remove the valve from the cup so that he didn't have to suck on it. You do have to be careful because it will spill if turned over.

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K.P.

answers from Columbus on

I noticed several people said to try cups with straws and I agree, but for some children it is hard to figure out what to do with a straw. If you want to teach your child the easy way to use a straw, get the juice boxes, and squeeze a little bit so he will realize what happens. My own boys wouldn't use sippy cups at first either, but the juice box straw worked great and once they had the juice box down, they happily took the sippy cups sometimes too.

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M.K.

answers from Columbus on

Actually it is good your kid hates sippy cups, since they actually are really bad for your childs speech development, they actually encourage the child to not use muscles. Try straw cups and the Nuby.

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