Tips for introducing bottle?

gwennec

I have been ebf for 6 weeks now and would like to introduce the bottle so my husband can feed her at least once a day after I pump. Are there are tips? She hates pacifiers so I am concerned she won't take to the bottle.

orthomom

Start now. If you wait much longer she may refuse. Select a bottle that is wide neck and slow flow nipple. Buy only one (or two if they come packaged that way only) of a certain type and wait to see how she does with it. Have someone besides yourself give it to her the first several times. Make yourself scarce during the attempts. Don't worry that she won't take the paci...some bottlefed babies won't take them either (my DD#1 didn't until she was 3 months old even though she was exclusively bottlefed)...I think that is irrelevant to whether they take the bottle. Make sure that she is truly hungry but not ravenous so she won't be upset before he starts. Have him be patient and snuggle her like you would. If she refuses at first, don't worry just try again later. If she continues to refuse try having him get skin to skin ( they say this in the books but I have never been skin to skin nursing and DH never tried it). Try different bottles if she continues to give you trouble.

My DD#2 uses avent bottles and we have not had trouble. If I hadn't used them with DD#1 then I probably would have gotten Tommy Tippee because I have heard great things about those bottles for breastfed LO. I started bottles with DD#2 at 3.5 weeks consistently (DH gives one at night and now the nanny gives one in the day to get DD ready for my return to work). DD#2 did have an occasional bottle before that because she had jaundice and we supplemented occasionally to get her to eat more. The books say to start bottles between 3 and 5 weeks so you should be ok since you are barely out of that time frame.

Good luck

sdrake

DD is 12 weeks and still won't take a bottle. I have to go back to work for 8 days next week so I'm a little worried, but everyone tells me if she's hungry, she'll take it...I hope so!