help my baby has decided he doesn't want his milk anymore!

[tigwig]

He is 3mths old today and for the last week or so has been getting more and more difficult to feed. He generally takes 6oz for the 1st bottle of the day when he is really hungry but the rest of the day he can take as little as 1oz or up to 5oz at best. Obviously if he only does this with one bottle a day its not too bad but now he is refusing most of them. He takes a tiny bit then screams and screams and doesn't want anymore and calms down when you stop! He hasn't got reflux or colic or anything like that its just like he drinks enough to take the hunger pangs off then stops cos he doesn't like it! By the end of the day I tot up what he has had and it can be 10oz less then usual and therefore he then wakes more in the night and earlier the next day. I don't know whether to try weaning him wih baby rice or home cooked veg or just to persist and keep going. Any ideas?

[redcrx]

speak to your GP or HV. Has he seem the GP about reflux?

[tigwig]

He was checked out in hospital for reflux and they said he didn't have it. The thing is he has fed fine for the first 10 weeks of his life so why now has he started being a bugger?! I know the HV will say absolutely not to wean him but if he is having less milk I don't know what else to do.

[Schlomo78]

My little one was a bugger with his milk and used to refuse all the time. Turned out to be the nipple on the bottle that he didn't like so we changed them. Also he started up when his teats needed moving from slow flow, as it was causing him a lot of discomfort in wind and he would get tired of sucking hard for little reward. Might be worth a try. Hope this helps! :)
Let us know how you get on with him, whatever happens x

[redcrx]

good answer from schlomo. try the variable teats if you can.

also try dream feeding him. He may feed whist asleep and baby will often not suck so hard and give himself a tummy ache.

[tigwig]

He's already on medium flow teats and used to dream feed him but he wouldn't take hardly anything and was awful to get back to sleep! Am going to try him with a tiny bit of baby rice for dinner today.

[Le Chat]

My elsdest son was exactly like this...and would anyone listen to me? No! He could go hours without any milk and then take about 2oz. He regularly took about 11 oz in one day, yet as he still managed to put on weight every week, the Dr and midwife weren't interested. It totally preoccupied my life and I worried constantly about it. I used to wish that the bottles would squeeze!I tried him on evry type of bottle and every type of teat as well. I did wean him at 3 months because of this and once he got a taste of proper food, he gave up drinking from the bottle completely!! So I used to buy the baby food and add milk to it...even if it was an 'add water' food, so at least I knew that he was getting plenty of calcium. I also gave him yoghurts and anything that had calcium in it at all. I never knew of another person who had this problem, so it is nice (for me) that it is not a completely unique situation. It was so weird having another child years later who drank a 12oz bottle every 2 hours!
My eldest is now nearly 14 and the weaning guidelines were 4 months then but sometimes you just have to do what you feel is best. He is a healthy teenager, who eats and drinks all kinds of foodstuffs...but you would never catch him drinking a glass of milk to this day! Good luck, you are not alone. I would go with my gut feeling and don't worry. I wish I had spent less time worring about it...the time passes and there will soon be other things that he will worry you with, believe me!! lol
kerris x

[tigwig]

Well I gave him some baby rice for lunch and he loved it! He knew exactly how to eat off the spoon and would have devoured the lot I think but I didn't want to give him too much so soon. I don't think I will tell the hv yet as I don't want her to tell me off! I think its right though and unless he shows any signs of illness or something I shall keep on doing it now then move him onto home cooked veg.

[katieb73]

If your babe is hungry, he's hungry! Don't feel guilty, every child is different and will wean at different stages. When my son was born, as a first time mum I was fairly paranoid over what he digested, what came out and when. He is now a strapping 16 year old with no food or health issues.

But it seems to me that you are doing a great job and go with your instinct. If he's been checked for reflux and all is well then a little bit of baby rice or whatever else is absolutely fine. We all have different appetites as adults so why not as babies!! Let him enjoy the wonders of food!! Good luck! xx

[LoftyLottie]

My son was exactly the same. He got more and more difficult to feed and ended up taking a couple of oz. and no more, so I ended up making feeds all day. He actually didn't seem to like 'sucking' either. Eventually, against advice, I weaned him at 10 weeks. He was a large birth weight baby and never really seemed to act like a new born. Weaning was very quick, within a few days I had a very happy baby who was taking solids (but didn't like rice) and drinking very little milk. Anyway, he is 27 now and a big strapping healthy lad who still doesn't like milk.

I totally agree with Katie above. Go with your instincts. Every child is different.

[LoftyLottie]

Sorry, also agree with Le Chat. Didn't notice her post. Obviously, we had exactly the same experience!!

[LoftyLottie]

Should also add that my son never had a bottle after he was weaned. He went straight onto a feeder cup.

[tigwig]

Thank you again guys, you have reassured me I'm doing the right thing. He has had baby porridge and two lots of baby rice today and I've then found as he's having less bottles when he does he drinks more.

[Schlomo78]

How are you getting on Tigwig?

[Barbaramk]

My baby was born with tongue tie so found it hard breast feeding I expressed as much as I could (he was 9lb 13oz born) he was being topped up with formula he was still a pain taking milk from a bottle so we changed bottles then we had to get faster flow teats cos he found sucking very tiring he's gaing weight ok and has slept through the night (7pm til 6am) since he was 8 weeks he still doesn't want all his 5oz bottle at 6am it takes him an hour sometimes to take the whole bottle. I've been so worried that he's only taking about 20oz a day at a push when he should be on 30oz he's 9wks old now and have been thinking about changing his milk or even weaning him in the next few weeks. Reading all your replies has made me feel better that I'm not on my own.