How much BM at day care?

Steph_in_NJ

My LO is 3.5 months old and was drinking about 12 oz of BM a day while at day care. I know this is probably on the low side so we always send some extra with her. (At first she was refusing the bottle and has gradually been doing better with it.)

Today I got a call that she's gone through about 10 oz before noon and to bring more. Is that normal?

I kind of wonder if they may be overfeeding her, mistaking her feeding cues. At home I feed her whenever she's hungry and that varied, but at day care they say that she's hungry exactly every 3 hours, even though I told them to feed on demand, not on a schedule.

 

snicksnack

on average my DD take 8 ounces and one nursing session or 12 ounces a day this is over three feedings.  She tends to eat every three hours in the morning it could be 2.5 if she has been awake longer than normal and in the afternoon it could be as long as 4 depending on how long of a nap she takes.  My instructions are to give 4 ounces at each feeding if she seems hungry after four to offer an additional ounce, she never takes more than 5.  I am not sure what time you drop her off but unless you drop her off really early that seems like a lot unless they gave 5 ounces at a time and the second feeding was at around noon.  My DD tends to eat at around 9 or 9:30 then between 12 and 1 and then between 3 and 4.  I am not sure how you could solve the issue but if they have a freezer you could keep a couple of extra bags there just incase.

RadicalDreamer143

I feed my 13lb son 4oz, 3x at daycare.  From everything I read, the amount of BF milk should NOT increase like formula does, with age and weight, from 1 month to 6 months.  That said, I feed Liam at 5:45am before going to daycare at 6:30am, and he eats around every 3 hours, so 8:45am, 11:45am, 2:45pm, and I pick him up at 3:30pm with plenty of time to spare for the next feeding.  If they are feeding her every 3 hours, she should be fine unless you're gone for 12 hours, no?

mari_gold

When Zack started daycare at 3 months he was taking 3.5 oz bottles three times each day. As he got more comfortable at daycare I was able to increase the amount in the bottles; before we really got into solids, he was taking 5 oz. in each bottle. How long has your daughter been in daycare? Could it be a similar situation?

Side note: Zack also miraculously developed an every-three-hour schedule at daycare. I feed on demand at home, but since it doesn't seem to bother him at all during the week, I just go with the flow. 

Steph_in_NJ

Thanks -- it sounds like Molly's eating about the same amount as other babies most days.

She's been in day care for 3 weeks now. For the first couple of weeks she was refusing some bottles, so we were putting only 3 oz in each so we wouldn't waste anything.

Since she's been doing better, we're putting 4 oz in each bottle. She's there for about 9 hours ( 8 am - 5 pm). They feed her at approximately 9:30, 12:30, and 3:30.

Today they said they gave her 1 bottle at around 9:00, an extra 2.5 oz that I sent with her, then the 2nd bottle at 11:00. They said she kept crying and asking for more. So she's got 1 bottle left. They're trying to hold her off for the last bottle until 2:30 and I'm going to sneak out of work early to get there by 4:30. Hopefully it'll work, and I'll send extra milk tomorrow.

The most I can pump is about 12 oz a day and I'm really trying to not have to supplement with formula, but I guess we may need to. 

 

swimrbride

It sounds like they could be misreading her crys. I know DS would take a bottle any time it is given to him even if he wasn't crying out of hunger.