Won't suck a bottle teat - Breast Fed baby

[clarem]

I have a 13 week old baby that is breast fed. We are trying to get her to take a bottle and have made some progress over the last 3 weeks but she still cannot work out how to actually suck the teat. Initially she would have nothing to do with the bottle but we have tried with the bottle consistently every day for the last 3 weeks and she now quite happily brings the bottle to her mouth, is quite happy with the teat in her mouth and does not mind the drips of milk that come out the teat. What we cannnot get her to do is suck the teat. She has absolutely no idea how to. She ends up getting frustrated as she knows milk is there and cannot work out how to get it out.

She has taken a bottle in the past as due to problems with a stiff neck at birth, she could not latch onto my breast and had EBM through a bottle for the first 3 weeks of her life until she was able to latch on. We tried a bottle again at about 6 weeks old but she was confused how to latch on to me at her next feed so we put the bottle away until 3 weeks ago.

Even if i give her a beaker cup, she will still have to suck which brings me back to the problem of how do I teach her to suck on a teat?

Any tips greatfully received.

Many thanks

 

[Squiglet]

Does she use the beaker? The milk comes out much faster from a beaker spout and requires less suck. If she can use one then tbh I wouldn't bother with bottles... I very rarely used bottles with Tia, just these soft beaker spout advent ones... When she got old enough I moved her onto the hard ones... We had a couple of bottles but as you said, she struggled with them at times too.

If she can use a beaker.. just stick with that. After all once her teeth come in it will be much better for her to take drinks etc through a beaker rather than a bottle.

If you really want her to use a bottle then you can try an quicker flow spout where she won't have to put much effort into sucking.

 

[valentine]

Hi clare,

I sympathise - I am having a similar problem.

Hopefully replies I received to my post (linked above) will help you. Good luck hon - its so tying, isn't it.

Valentine Xxx

 

[clarem]

Thanks for your replies and advice. I had thought about a beaker but I assumed that she would have to suck at that also. Did not think about beakers or cups that had a free flowing spout. I will persevere for another couple of weeks but after that I think we need to draw a line under bottles and think again about beakers.

 

[*saulino*]

HI

I hope you can find somthing that works!!
Kiara was breastfed and when i pumped and tried to feed her a bottle she would have nothing of it so waited till she was 6 months and she took to a sippy cup which realistically prob isnt what you want.
sorry i wasnt much help
Katrina