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KiwiL 
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Joined: 29 December 2006
Location: Wellington, NZ
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 Topic: Tips for getting bubs to take bottle
Posted: 30 May 2011 at 11:47am |
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I know there are probably a million posts on this, and I will have a big hunt, but thought if I asked specifically I might get some good ideas.
I'd like to get my boy to take a bottle. He's never had anything more than a few mils from a bottle all his life. We've had a rocky breast feeding journey and I am starting to feel like I might want to wean in a couple of months. But I am stressed that he won't take a bottle at the moment.
Anyone got any tips for getting a very determined bub to take a bottle? Any ideas will be gratefully accepted and tried!
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caliandjack
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Posted: 30 May 2011 at 11:56am |
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Does he take a dummy? Getting teats in a similar shape/design as the dummy can help.
Does he use a sippy cup? You could always put his milk in one.
Sorry not much help - DD never had a problem with taking a bottle. She's her mother's daughter doesn't care what form her food comes in, as long as she gets fed.
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Ode2Joy
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Posted: 30 May 2011 at 1:53pm |
With DD, we found that she started taking the bottle only when she got really, really hungry..you could try giving DS a bottle, say 45 mins to 1 hr past his usual feed time..
DD also likes her formula really warm! We tried lukewarm and she showed no interest in feeding. But when I warmed up the bottle, she glugged it down! 
But it took us a couple of weeks to get her used to the bottle..I'd suggest to keep trying once a day..
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Chickoin
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Posted: 30 May 2011 at 4:29pm |
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DD also preferred her milk warmer than I expected and would only drink if I was well out of sight, DH would feed her.
Offering once a day is great advice and try not to stress about it. If DS gets stressed then leave it for a couple of days before trying again.
For some reason, wiggling the bottle teat in DD's mouth seemed to work well, like she didn't like it moving so she would suck on it to keep it still.
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Jaune
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Posted: 30 May 2011 at 8:11pm |
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The baby whisperer did something on this on Good Morning recently...she gave all the suggestions above, and she also suggested resting your little finger under baby's chin because it's used to being up against the breast and to tap the bottle a few times with your finger to make the teat vibrate as Chickoin said. She also said that moving around, feeding while walking and holding them secure was good too as a distraction.
Good luck! DS has refused a bottle since birth...after a few attempts we just gave up and now his feeding isn't quite so demanding so I can get away for a few hours if I need to!
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KiwiL
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Posted: 31 May 2011 at 5:34pm |
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Thanks guys for the tips. Guess I have to keep trying. Might see if I can find the Baby Whisperer thing.
TBH, I feel if I could get him to take a bottle I might be able to continue breast feeding for longer too. But him absolutely refusing has me wanting to give up because I never get to have a break from his fussing.
Oh well, I'll just keep at it. :)
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myfullhouse
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Posted: 31 May 2011 at 5:54pm |
 kiwilaurie wrote:
Thanks guys for the tips. Guess I have to keep trying. Might see if I can find the Baby Whisperer thing. |
Just search the Good Morning section of the TVNZ website. She has covered this topic a few times so there will definately be something on there
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ItchyFeet
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Posted: 31 May 2011 at 7:59pm |
caliandjack wrote:
Does he take a dummy? Getting teats in a similar shape/design as the dummy can help.
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We had so much stress with this when DS started daycare, yet he'd been having one bottle a day a home for months, sometimes easily, sometimes a struggle. Finally after trying many different bottles and techniques, the simple thing was to get a teat the same shape as his dummy, and we've never looked back.
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KiwiL
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Posted: 31 May 2011 at 10:11pm |
Nah, he's never had a dummy either. He's not been a terribly sucky baby so we never needed to use one. So, good tip, but doesn't help me unfortunately! 
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mel_s
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Posted: 10 June 2011 at 10:17am |
i am in the same boat - returning to work in 4 weeks and have been trying to get bubs to take a bottle every day since she was 6 weeks old (is now 7 months). she is so stubborn and will only drink from a boob. (yesterday i rang plunket for advice or tips and they told me that she is clever so of course she only wants to breastfeed. well, cheers very much, that's extremely helpful - much like when i went to them for help when my older daughter was 6 months old and refused to sleep unless in bed with me - their advice was to buy a bigger bed so we could all co-sleep comfortably. nice one plunket!) anyway, have tried just about every bottle and teat on the market with no success. so frustrating! sorry i can't help you out, but thought i'd let you know you're not alone with this struggle
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T_Rex
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Posted: 10 June 2011 at 2:05pm |
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I've watched at daycare them introducing bottles to babies and one thing they do is hold the baby upright and facing outwards - kind of like in a front-facing frontpack? They reckon if the baby is facing them, it looks for a breast, whereas facing outwards, it's open to new stuff. It's also easier to show it stuff to distract it from whats going on.
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Tips for getting bubs to take bottle
