My 6 Month Old Granddaughter Won't Take ANY Bottle - Only Wants the Breast - Now

Back in the day i worked in an infant room at a center, I had a few babies throughout the years that refused a bottle because they were breastfed. Suggestion- try having them feed on a boppy pillow with an article of clothing from mom next to them. Try using a dr. Brown bottle. Another one would only feed in the baby carrier- faced away from me with canopy up. The only thing she could see/smell was my hand. Another one needed breast milk in a sippy cup and tip back and forth. It took forever but with patience she drank it. Not a sippy that had a stopper or needed to suck. And finally one mom would come every lunch break and come feed. Good luck. The stress of the adults doesn't help baby.

For my babies who were breastfed - when I gave them bottles, the temperature of the milk made all the difference. If it wasn't heated just so, they wouldn't take the bottle. All my kids were like this. And different people/methods heated up bottles differently which made it more difficult.

So that may be a factor to look into. My friend found the same thing.

Also check the flow (size of hole) in the nipple. I found the playtex nipples were the best (most like breast).

Is she taking cereal and baby food?

Refer your daughter to the website Kellymom.com and tell her to search for the term "reverse cycling". Some babies grow and develop just fine by doing most of their eating in the evening and at night with mom, and don't eat during the day.

Think of it this way: people think it's great if a 6 month old baby goes 8-9 hours at night without eating. They make up for it by eating every 4 hours all day. With reverse cycling, babies go 8-9 hours during the day without eating while at daycare. Then eat every 4 hours in the evening and at night.

The downside is, of course, that mom doesn't get as much sleep. Women I know who have done this have co-slept so that the baby can nurse all night without the mom having to fully wake up.

Has the baby started solids at all yet? If so, they can see if the baby will take baby oatmeal cereal made with breastmilk during the day. It's not a replacement for nursing a lot in the evening and at night, but it can help get something in her tummy during the day so she's not so fussy at daycare.

Good luck.

It's hard to tell without more detail. For example, I wonder if it's not just the nipple but the closeness and the smell of Mom that your granddaughter misses. How long has she been in daycare and how new is this problem? Is the baby just off of breast milk exclusively and using formula part of the time? Is it a new formula? Could she be unused to the taste or consistency, or having a problem with it that makes her have a belly ache or gas? Is the daycare staff so overloaded or frustrated that the baby is picking up on the agitation and unable to relax? Are they constantly calling your daughter?

Can your daughter nurse with a specific soft cloth (maybe fleece or one of the Taggies products) and then have the daycare people use the same comfort item? Sometimes a familiar object can be soothing and give consistency from one place to the other. What does your daughter do on weekends or holidays? Just breast feed? Does anyone else bottle feed the baby at those times? How does she do then?

I agree that we just love it when our babies go all night without eating - and the pediatricians will tell you they can manage just fine on what they eat during the hours they are awake. But we then worry during the same amount of time during the day. Is the baby maintaining or gaining weight? How about a quick weight check at the pediatrician? Usually those are free visits. That might reassure your daughter that it's not time to panic. I agree that trying first fruits that have a lot of liquid might be good too.

I agree that your daughter needs to get the baby to the doctor and get a weight check, first and foremost, to be sure that this situation is not causing the baby to lose weight. That is a crucial issue.

How old was the baby when put into day care? How long has this been going on? For instance, has the baby been in day care and taking bottles OK for a while, and suddenly started rejecting bottles, or has the baby just recently started day care and was entirely breast-fed with no bottle feedings (breast milk or otherwise) until being put into day care, with no transition at home between breast and bottle--?
Could you give us more details? There's a big difference between a baby who has been doing all right taking bottles and who suddenly rejects them, and a baby who is put into day care and onto bottles at six months old....Our lactation consultant told us (this was a while back) that if we wanted the baby ever to take a bottle, it was important to use both bottle and breast alternating from very early, or the baby might reject all bottles. Did your daughter use bottle feedings at all before starting day care for her baby?

At 6 months you could try a sippy cup or a straw cup instead of a bottle. She might be more open to that. Also, she is old enough to try solid foods. You could try giving her some stage 1 baby foods.

Just give it time. If an adult (other than mom) could hold her on a weekend and be super patient and just have it there for her to try when she's ready, she might give it a try. But it could take a few hours or more. The successful stories I've heard sometimes involve someone just holding or rocking for a few hours the first couple of times.

excess lipas (or some thing in the milk, i think my old LC said it was the lipas) within the milk will make it go bad overnight. it will taste off. won't smell off though. this could be a reason...
try a sippy cup or even sipping out of a regular cup...
and soldis to get her to eat, with sips of water to prevent dehyudration should work too.

This happened to one of my family members. The mother was really upset and thought she might have to quit her job.

Another family member put baby cereal in the formula, and the baby took the bottle for that reason. (The milk in the bottle was different.) You need a nipple with a larger hole (juice nipple, maybe?)

Now, there are moms who will yell about putting cereal in a bottle, saying it's not good to do that. But if you've got a baby who isn't taking the bottle, then you do what ya gotta do to keep the baby out of the hospital!

This was the turning point for this baby. Maybe it would be for your grandbaby.

Choose one nipple and only use that nipple for a week or more. Changing nipple confuses her. This worked with my oldest granddaughter who refused the bottle.

I also suggest using one bottle at home on the weekends. This may help her know it's a routine even at home. She'll feel more comfortable at home.

She may refuse the bottle if given by mom. Have someone else feed her with the bottle. Keep offering it to her for an hour or more. Relax, cuddle, make the waiting time pleasant. You want her to associate warmth and comfort with the bottle.

My granddaughter was closer to 4 month's when she accepted a bottle. The nipple she accepted was the one provided by the hospital. I'm guessing the nurse supplemented until Mom's milk came in.

Before that nipple wore out she accepted a similar nipple from the store.

Forget the bottle and go right to a sippy cup. That's the only thing that worked with my oldest child.

My son did this to me. I tricked him by having my husband hold the bottle under my arm pit and feeding him the bottle that way. I gradually moved away and eventually he didn't notice. Or try using a sippy cup. The baby should be starting on some solids now. Breastmilk in cereal etc.