4 Month Old Won't Take Bottle

I had the same issue and found out my daughter only likes dr browns bottles. and also, we recently found it she likes soy similac. keep trying. Jenn

I would just try all kinds of different bottles. My daughter would only take nubby ones that simulate breastfeeding (they don't have to take a breath to allow air in like most). Keep offering, eventually he'll take it.

hi M., you've got lots of good advice here, i just wanted to add that there is no 'fault' in having fed your baby exclusively from your breasts! and he's a smart fella for feeling strongly that's where he prefers to dine. be patient and persistent, he WILL learn to drink from a bottle, but please don't feel as if you've done anything wrong!
khairete
S.

I also never gave my BF baby a bottle and she will be starting daycare in a month. She's a little older (8 months now), but I started trying to train her with a sippy cup when she was not much older than yours. I figured why start them with another bad habit they will have to break later? I heard recommendations about the Nuby sippy cup having a special spout that was easy for BF babies to transition to. It worked like a charm - she loves it! She gets very excited whenever I bring out her cup, even if it just has water in it. We had tried other sippy cups with little success. Now I feel confident about starting her in daycare without worrying that she will starve. They're a little drippy, so I try to make sure to have a bib on her. I ordered mine from diapers.com - just search "Nuby sippy cup." I got the one with two handles. You can read the other reviews of it there, as well. Good luck!

Oh, boy, I had the same problem. It was so awful. I waited too long to introduce the bottle (10 weeks), and even though it contained breastmilk, my daughter screamed like she was being TORTURED if someone tried to give it to her. I tried all kinds of different bottles/nipples. Make sure you try some with latex (not silicone) nipples too. I tried getting out of the house and away, but my mistake there was that I was never away for long enough for her to get hungry enough to bother with the bottle. Eventually (when she was almost 6 mos. old) I simply had to return to work, and having a very caring, persistent, and patient day care provider was what finally did the trick (as well as me being away for more than 4-5 hours). I'm due with #2 in a couple of weeks and I while I definitely will once again be a militant breastfeeder/breastmilk only mom, I will make sure that this baby gets some quality time with his daddy...and a bottle. Good luck, don't beat yourself up, and try not to worry- your baby will eat when he's hungry. Just make sure your caretaker has a lot of patience, and maybe some earplugs ;-) Oh, and my friend that had the same problem took a blankie or a 'lovie' (half blanket/half stuffed animal) and slept with it herself, dabbed it with a little breastmilk, and gave it to the sitter/husband when she wasn't around so that person could wrap up the baby with it while they attempted the bottle. She said it helped her boy a little to smell mommy even when she wasn't around. So that's something else you could try (it only worked marginally for me). You (or the sitter/daddy) could also try a sippy cup or a little tiny cup, the theory being that he might drink if it was out of something that was nothing like a nipple. this worked a bit for us before I went back to work. Good luck!

I had the same problem with my son and I ended up giving him the bottles that have the same nipple as the gerber nuk pacifiers. He took to those but it did take him alittle to realize that it wasn't just a paci. Hope this is helpful.

M.-
I feel your pain! I did the exact same thing, and had the same problem with my son at 4 months. And I was starting back to work part time... I was very fortunate, and had a very understanding daycare provider, so I just worked with him. I tried all kinds of bottles, nipples, etc. In the end what worked for me was getting the bottle really warm, and having to warm it up part way through. The kid just wants it body temp. That combined with hunger, did the trick but it took a while. My dr told me to have hubby feed the baby once a day, and I never did. Now I know why. I would suggest if you want to leave him with a sitter, that you start out leaving him for a few hours, and slowly stretching it out. When they are hungry enough, they will eat. You just have to play around with what will work for your child.

Good luck.

M.,

Others have suggested trying different kinds of bottles and that is an awesome idea. My children were bottle fed from the beginning because I couldn't breastfeed, but I know of a friend who's daughter wouldn't take bottles period (any of them), so it's ok. Just work your time out around his feeding schedule and it will get easier. I know it's hard. Even with bottle fed babies, that bonding time with mommy is so important to them. Keep trying different bottles and you'll find the one he likes. God Bless.

try different nipples. wider shorter narrower. there are so many out there...maybe he just doesnt like that one. another thing to try is to give a bottle before he starts to fuss about being hungry. sometimes when they are frustrated all they want is mommy not some second rate bottle. make sure the liquid is warm too....just like he's used to.

If you know that he can and has taken a bottle then I would say go ahead and leave him with a sitter. When he is hungry enough he will eat the bottle. It might be later than his usual eating time but he wont starve himself because he didn't get his preffered food method.

I thank God that the baby wants YOU. he wants Mommy not some old bottle. Can you work your departure time around his feeding time? Babies grow up so fast. Enjoy this bonding time. AF

I had the same issue with my little one. I tried a few different nipples and finally the First Years Breast Flow nipple did the trick! I think she initially took the bottle from someone other than me (my husband or mom). And now she takes it with no problem. She still prefers the breast but that's no surprise.

Hi,
I am not sure, you may have already done this but...
Let someone else try giving him the bottle your husband or Mom or whatever. Sometimes breastfed babies won't take it from you because they want the breast but will take it from another person. Also make sure it has breast milk not formula in it. My daughter would not take a formula bottle until she was about 9 months old. However she did take breast milk from my mom or her father. Good luck!

Hi M.,

I'm a BFing mom who just returned to work this Monday. My little girl hadn't been given a bottle until the week before my return to work, and predictably wasn't very interested. Because she was strictly breastfed, she also didn't use a pacifier.

When I returned to work on Monday she went to the sitter. She was fussy throughout the day, drinking an ounce of expressed breastmilk throughout the day, but not really mastering the sucking from a bottle. She was still having wet and poopy diapers so I wasn't concerned about that part. She slept and fussed throughout much of the day until, frankly, hunger sunk in and nature took over. Once she realized that the only was she was going to get milk was from the bottle she took it. Her first bottle was at about 4:30pm and was 2oz. That evening and throughout much of the night she ate. She did eat quite frequently throughout the night so sleep wasn't what I'd have liked it to be, but she was hungry :). Tuesday she took regular bottles and now she isn't having any problem with the bottle during the day and nursing in the evening.

Don't worry, your son will take the bottle, although you may have to experiment with a few nipples. Also, you may find it easier with the sitter for him to transition to the bottle because he may be reluctant to take the bottle from you at first since he's used to breastfeeding with you.

I also wanted to say that it isn't your "fault" at all. Your little one will be alright! Best of luck!

Try every size and shape of bottle and nipple you can find. be patient! it happened to me too... and i freaked but eventually we found one he liked.