Holding the Bottle

L.,
Use the handled sippy cups to start off. My son now 18 months, never held his bottle either. I would have loved for him to hold it the same as you. I started using the sippy cups and he would hold those, but still not the bottle. It's at least a start.
K.

One way to help you out is to use Playtex bottles... once you take the air out it does not matter if the bottle is held up or down, you can still drink out of it... This is great when you don't have enough hands. I have 3 daughters 3 and under and sometimes I just can't hold the bottle for my 6 month old... so I can just put her in the highchair and the bottle can just rest down... Hope this helps.

My 10 month old has zero interest in eating out of his bottle, so he certainly won't hold it. For the last 5 months or so, getting him to drink from his bottle has been a constant battle (even though he has been on a bottle since he was born.) My pediatrician says some kids just aren't that interested in their liquids. He does try to hold his own sippy cup so that seems positive for the future when we give up the bottle. So I would say if your daughter won't hold her bottle, don't worry too much. Before you know it, she will have moved on from it.

Hi!
I encourage you to keep trying! I worked really hard with my son and he started holding it at 6 months old. I don't put him to sleep with a bottle, but allow him to hold it sitting on the couch or in his stroller with me right by him.

I kept putting his hands on it while I fed him. I would let it fall if he let go and when I put it back in I'd put his hands back on it to hold it. I'd spend the first part of the bottle doing this(many times). He was hugry so it motivated him to want to hold it or he lost his formula! Later I went to holding his elbows as he held the bottle sitting on my lap facing OUT! For some reason this worked and he would hold it if he didn't see me. Now he'll hold it all the time, on my lap or not!

they have some bottles with handles or the bottles that have a hole in the middle. If you are using those avent bottle they might just be too big. hope this helps.

L.,
She should show some interest at this point.You can encourage her by helping her put her hands on the bottle. Does she feed herself finger foods? If so you know that she is able to work her hands. It is extremely important that babies learn to use thier hands to encourage small motor skills. Just keep helping her to put her hands where they should be and eventually she will get it. It could be that she is depending on you to much, because she knows that you will do it for her. But thier are times when she will be tired and want the extra attention which is fine, but she should be getting use to it by now.
Good Luck

Hi
I bought the Avent starter bottles..... They have handles so that the kids can hold their bottles better..... My son was holding his own bottle at 3 months with this one and then when your ready for the sippy cup part it turns in to one so that you can teach them how to use the sippy cup..... Good luck and keep trying he'll get the hang of it......
V. K.

Hi L.
you sound exactly like me -- my 12 mos old daughter won't hold her own bottle either. Being a first time mom I never encouraged her to hold it on her own and now I regret that.
We tried everything, making her hold it, propping it up, etc and she's very defiant and stubborn about it. Yeah, we could really force it upon her, but she'll soon be using a cup (she drinks water out of it with no problem) entirely, so we're not sweating it. I just enjoy the closeness and if she's hungry during the road, I give her the sippy cup or finger foods.
So I'm just concentrating on her learning to use the sippy cup more and more, instead of teaching her to hold her own bottle.

Yes it gets annoying when u have millions of things to do and you have to sit there holding it for them!

So I'd start introducing the sippy cup by putting water in it for now, and she'll eventually transition into using it all the time. But don't sweat it. As my daughter is a year old we're in the process of transitioning her to the cup but again, we're not sweating it and know she'll use the cup eventually!

Relax, things will be fine, before u know it she'll be 20 yrs old and definately not using a bottle!

I don't know if this is the issue but maybe it is the temp of the bottle. My son didn't like to hold anything that was what he considered too cold. Just a thought.

L.,
I can't believe a 4-month-old held a bottle! That is VERY unusual. Please do not push your daughter to hold her own bottle, since it upsets her so. She is still young for that, imo. You should hold the bottle for her during car trips. Just pull over and devote time to helping her. It could be very hard to hold a bottle in a moving car, with passing scenery, noise, so much activity. It sounds like she just cannot do it yet. This is still early.
Amy

She's obviously communicating to you that she values this time WITH you. Why not enjoy the time cuddling and feeding her? Pull over in the car if you need to. Whether nursing or bottle feeding this is one of the most precious times we share with our babies!

I started first with my daughter holding my fingers while I held the bottle, then had her hold the bottle while I held the end, then eventually she took it herself. I only let her do it when I am there to watch her. I do not do it with the night time bottles. Most times she gets tired and drops it so I have to hold it anyway. But it was a good way to get her started with the sippy cup, which had handles and made it easier for her to hold it.

L.,

I nursed, but started my daughter on my milk in a sippy cup when she was about 6 months.. She never actually took a bottle - we went from the breast to a cup. There are lots of transitional type cups that are easy for them to hold. Just an idea.

Good luck!

Hi L.,
I am a sahm of three beatutiful children 6, 2, 3m. In my opinion you are better off not teaching little ones how to hold their own bottle! I have found that they get use to it and it will be harder to break the habit later. i never let my babies hold their bottle and Destiny was off her bottle at 8 months and Makayla at 11 month (Only because she didn't know how to use a sippy cup!) Right now I am EBF my son and if he does endup useing bottles later I will break that habit early too. In my family I have seen cousins walking around with bottles well into their toddler years and it is sooooo bad on their teeth. You daughter probley loves her cuddle time and take it from a mom that has a few kiddos that time is very short and you should enjoy it while it last. Once it is done there is no going back! This is just my opinion though!

S.

My 9 year old doesn't hold her bottle either... as much as I wish she would... I know she will start... oh... just about when it's time to stop using a bottle! That is the way it was for my first daughter!

Hang in there!
Jen~

Hi! Actually, I've read that babies holding their own bottle is frowned upon by many doctors and experts. If we were in the car, I usually would pull over and feed her. At bedtime, I held her and fed her while in a rocking chair.

I think the problem is at night when babies hold their own bottles, there may be a tendency to fall asleep with the bottle in their mouths which can let formula back up and rot new teeth.

I'd continue to feed her yourself...she won't be taking that bottle for much longer!!

Sorry, I hope that helps some--even though it probably doesn't really answer your question.

L.,

I nursed until my son was 10 mos old and then went to a bottle. He too did not want to hold it himself either. Honestly, I think he liked it that I held him while he was drinking so he could get some cuddle time. He started holding it around 11 1/2 mos. I would put his hands on it then gently take mine away, only guiding him when he was getting too much air. My advice is to maybe hold her in the beginning so she still gets that closeness and try to encourage her from there.

Good luck,
Denise