Need advice from someone who's bottle fed baby has never liked a bottle!

[HLx]

Ds is 6 months old and has been bottle fed since birth, hes never enjoyed it, and ended up with severe silent reflux, which is under control and has been for months.

However heres where he gets tricky.

He likes milk, will have it in with foods, he WONT drink it from a bottle (ive tried a few bottles) but he will drink the lot from a spoon or a syringe, usually a syringe as its just a bit quicker but still not as quick as a bottle. He drinks water from sippy cups fine, but the cups he has he wont drink the milk from talk about high maintenance!

I have spent months stressing about this, but now I just laugh as hes such a demanding little dude and he likes things his own way.

But he still needs milk and still wants it, just not from a bottle or the cups we have.

Has anyone got any fabulous miracle sippy cups they've used, or any advice from someone thats been through this with a baby like mine he doesnt and never has associated a bottle with comfort probably due to the reflux, he does not relax with a bottle and thr second he sees it he pushes it away, but the minuite I get the syringe out, the mouths is open ready!

He eats 3 meals a day, and has between 20-24oz formula, which is fine, his weight and diet is fine, it just takes too damn long to syringe 7oz!!!!

 

[OnErth&InHvn]

You don't have to use a bottle. As long as he's getting the milk he needs, use whatever method works.

Will he try a straw with a cup?

 

[HLx]

You don't have to use a bottle. As long as he's getting the milk he needs, use whatever method works.

Will he try a straw with a cup?

No and I'd prefer not using a bottle, he wont drink from a straw, he has no idea what to do, and using a syringe takes half an hour each time, its ridiculous!

I did have some success with the cup he drinks his water from, i did try it previously with no luck, but he did drink a cup full of milk just before bed from there, so hopefully this will be the turning point, after this child I officially hate bottles!

 

[Babybump87]

Have you tried him with a nuby beaker ?! All mine have loved them . They have a soft spout . Home Bargains usually sell them for about 3/4 quid .

They are called nuby grip and sip .

Both my girls loved Dr Browns but DS hated them we tried about 4 different bottles brands before he settled with a MAM bottle we got free haha needless to say thank god Mothercare was still around !

 

[HLx]

Have you tried him with a nuby beaker ?! All mine have loved them . They have a soft spout . Home Bargains usually sell them for about 3/4 quid .

They are called nuby grip and sip .

Both my girls loved Dr Browns but DS hated them we tried about 4 different bottles brands before he settled with a MAM bottle we got free haha needless to say thank god Mothercare was still around !

Thats the cups he uses for his water hun! He drinks lovely from them, and after a successful cup of milk before bed and first thing this morning, he has also decided on a cup strike too! Hes turning me so grey i swear

 

[Babybump87]

Hahahaha hes a little monkey !

Least you have found something that he likes anyway haha
X

 

[HLx]

Hahahaha hes a little monkey !

Least you have found something that he likes anyway haha
X

Hes such a pain! Honestly hes such a fussy boy I can't cope!
So far hes drank milk from his cup again this morning, hoping it stays that way, ive accepted the fact he isnt a milk monster, but he still needs to drink a bit atleast he would be content in not having any if it him havr his own way we all joke he should have been a breastfed baby!

 

[noon_child]

I'm all for teaching them to use an open cup as early as possible, and if he associates sucking with pain he may really take to drinking from an open cup, BUT while he is learning you will loose a lot of formula (expensive) and make a lot of mess! I wonder if guiding him to drink from an open cup while he's on your lap might work? So you'd hold the weight of the cup up to his mouth and make sure it wasn't knocked over etc. but he'd have control of tipping it in to his mouth or pulling it away (so you aren't tipping it in to his mouth. Could a health nurse of some kind help with this?

The only other thing I can think is maybe doing 5 x 4oz rather than 3 x 7oz. Keep trying with the sippy cups but if he wont take it try the syringe (have it hidden out of sight - if he sees it and finds it easier he'll prob not bother trying the sippy cup). So maybe wake up 6:30 (or whenever) and have 4 oz milk, 7:30/8:00 breakfast, 9:30/10am mid morning 4oz milk, 12noon lunch, 1:30/2pm post lunch 4oz milk, 3:30 afternoon 4oz milk, 5:30 dinner, 7pm bedtime 4oz milk. Just might feel more manageable taking 15mins than 30mins and gives him extra tries with the cups each day. It may well feel like your day is nothing but putting either food or milk in him, but it doesn't last forever as food starts to take over from milk. This schedule kind of mimics my tea drinking so it seemed natural to me to give my baby a drink at these times though!!!

P.S a 7oz bottle/cup is quite heavy to pick up so it may be that just the physical effort of holing that much up to his mouth is putting him off. Imagine someone giving you a 2L bottle of pop - even if it was your favourite drink you might get tired of tipping it up all the time!

 

[HLx]

I'm all for teaching them to use an open cup as early as possible, and if he associates sucking with pain he may really take to drinking from an open cup, BUT while he is learning you will loose a lot of formula (expensive) and make a lot of mess! I wonder if guiding him to drink from an open cup while he's on your lap might work? So you'd hold the weight of the cup up to his mouth and make sure it wasn't knocked over etc. but he'd have control of tipping it in to his mouth or pulling it away (so you aren't tipping it in to his mouth. Could a health nurse of some kind help with this?

The only other thing I can think is maybe doing 5 x 4oz rather than 3 x 7oz. Keep trying with the sippy cups but if he wont take it try the syringe (have it hidden out of sight - if he sees it and finds it easier he'll prob not bother trying the sippy cup). So maybe wake up 6:30 (or whenever) and have 4 oz milk, 7:30/8:00 breakfast, 9:30/10am mid morning 4oz milk, 12noon lunch, 1:30/2pm post lunch 4oz milk, 3:30 afternoon 4oz milk, 5:30 dinner, 7pm bedtime 4oz milk. Just might feel more manageable taking 15mins than 30mins and gives him extra tries with the cups each day. It may well feel like your day is nothing but putting either food or milk in him, but it doesn't last forever as food starts to take over from milk. This schedule kind of mimics my tea drinking so it seemed natural to me to give my baby a drink at these times though!!!

P.S a 7oz bottle/cup is quite heavy to pick up so it may be that just the physical effort of holing that much up to his mouth is putting him off. Imagine someone giving you a 2L bottle of pop - even if it was your favourite drink you might get tired of tipping it up all the time!

Thanks for this!

I posted this a little while ago now, and since this he hasn't had a bottle since! He uses his cup 3 times a day, morning is 9oz, afternoon is 7oz and evening is 7oz, in the morning he usually has 12oz in total which is included in his porridge so a total of around 24-26oz a day which is plenty. He also feeds himself during the afternoon milk, morning and evening hes just happy me doing it. Using cups for milk has been the game changer for us, hes drinking more now in 3 cups than he did having 4-5 bottles.. he HATES bottles!!! Hes been bottle free for almost 2 weeks i think it is and hes doing amazing!