4 Month Old and Bottle Drinking

Sorry to hear that you are going through this. I know how stressful it can be. My almost 15 month old daughter never took to the bottle. Ever. I tried 3 or 4 different bottles and nipples before realizing she just wasn't going to do it. She would go 8-10 hours without drinking anything and I ended up having to come home during my lunch break to nurse her for about 5 months until she was able to start using the sippy cup. Your son may be old enough for you to try the sippy cup too. I would introduce it at each mealtime and let him play around with it so he can get used to it.

Before my daughter was able to use the sippy cup, my husband or the babysitter would feed her a little milk using a medicine dropper or baby spoon. It took forever, but they were able to get her to take about 2 ounces which is better than nothing.

Some of the things I tried to do with her that I had read/heard about were:

Feed her upright, in a bouncer, or with her back to someone's chest and make a game out of it by singing songs.

Feed her while standing or walking around

Try feeding her right when she wakes up or is dozing off and is really sleepy

Make sure the milk is really warm and run the nipple under hot water to warm it up

Good luck!

J.

It's a little nerve racking at first, but you have to be consistant on trying. It depends on the bottle that you are using also. At 4mths old, they can be very picky about their bottles. The Advent brand is fab, however the old school platex nursers are fab too. If he is fussing, try a different bottle. That may be the trick. But remember, be consistant. Baby needs to learn to take the bottle. Baby will not starve, once your baby has been without food long enough for their sake, they will eat, either breast or bottle. But if you continue to offer the breast, they will hold out as long as they can for it. Continue to offer the bottle. Consistancy is the KEY word!! Good Luck

I agree with Samantha. It could be the bottle or just the style of the nipple. My daughter wouldn't use anything except the Platex Nurser Orthodontic Bottle/Nipple combo. And my son wouldn't use anything except the "classic" Evenflo style bottle/nipple combo.

They both BFed and got bottle fed. Right from day one. It took a few different go's at the type of bottle/nipple combo with both of mine though. I loved the Platex pack that had 3 or 4 styles of nipples because once I found out which one was liked... I bought more of that style and didn't have to buy a ton [since the multi-pack was a gift from the shower].

Good luck. Just keep tryin!

*for what it's worth... No, I don't think he'll starve himself throughout the day. And daycares are used to this situation.*

Same boat here. He stopped taking the bottle at around 2 1/2 months. The week before I went back to work 3 1/2 months I buckled down to get him on the bottle. We bought a fancy "boob bottle. The nipple is textured and the bases is broader. The first week he ate hardly anything and would just nuse at night (every 2/3 hours) My husband experimented with different temperatures until he found the right one and he feeds him with his hand on his cheek and neck to increase skin contact.He also fed him while wearing him in a sling. Hopefully your care provider is willing to try different things. Good luck!

This happened to my sister when my niece was 4 mos old. She would have to go to the daycare on her lunch hour to nurse her, and eventually got her to drink formula from a sippy cup, but never a bottle. I don't know if she tried other bottles/nipples before resorting to the sippy cup though. Good luck!

Some good suggestions from others about trying different nipples, sippy cups, etc. Also, it may be less confusing for the baby if the person feeding him doesn't try to put him in any kind of a nursing position to drink from the bottle. Laying back in a person's arms reminds him of nursing, so try a bouncy seat or reclined high chair maybe. I"ve even heard of people using their snap-in carseat to give the baby a bottle because it's the right angle but the baby doesn't associate it with nursing.

Also - worst case scenario - the baby refuses to drink at daycare. Yes, it's 8 hours without milk. But, lots of 4 month old babies go 8 hours without milk every day. It's usually at night when sleeping but guess what - they go 8 hours and they don't starve to death. If this happen, it's called reverse cycling (you can look it up) and you may spend a lot of time in the evening, nighttime, and early morning nursing to make up for it. I hope you get the bottle to work (most people do), but thought I'd include this so that you don't panic in case it takes some time.

As tough as it is to hear and go through, he will eat when he is hungry enough.

He'll eat when he's hungry enough.
If you only offer the bottle...he'll take it eventually. He won't starve mama, I promise!
It may take YOU offering your milk in a bottle though, instead of the breast. Just a thought, although I didn't BF, so I'm not sure of other "mixed" options to try.

I agree with much of the advice you've gotten here. I would have folks feed him more upright vs cradling, like you would nursing. He will get the hang of it! The first week or so at daycare may be rough but consistency is key. He'll learn that his nice care providers/Daddy/babysitters feed him one way, but he'll always have special nursing time with Mommy. Be as patient and relaxed as you can so he doesn't feed off your stress and you will both do fine :) Good luck!

I don't know if this is an option for you, but I have a four month old in care too. She is close enough, that I take 'breaks' and lunch hour over at the house - feeding her. It was 2 times per day to begin with (She's on week 3 going now) - but now it's just one time per day. works out well for us.

Just a thought.

I had a lot of difficulty transitioning to a bottle as well. I did notice that my breastmilk did not store for long at all. I feel like for most babies it's the nipple like others have suggested, but check to make sure that the milk is fresh. Good luck!