Advice needed!

[Will]

Hi!

I am new to formula feeding due to a few problems with bf. I am slowly weaning DS onto formula, but he never seems to finish his bottle. He is three months old and i give him 180mls per bottle as it says on the tin. He usually drinks about half of the bottle at a time and wont drink any more. I thought maybe he wasnt hungry, so i waited till i was certain he was hungry, and there is still no change. He feeds every 2-3 hours, on the tin it says he should have 5 bottles a day and he usually has 4 lots of 180mls and 2 or 3 breast feeds. I would love to know if any one else has been through the same thing and if it gets better - do they ever drink the whole bottle and last four hours? and is it ok to reheat the bottle because i am going through way to much formula as it is lol

Thanks in advance

[hayleylea]

Hi there..dont worry about what the tin says. Its just a "guide" and its very rarely right for most bubs. I remember going through the same thing with DS..he wouldnt drink a full bottle but want more before the 4 hours was up. I say feed them when they want to be fed - they will let you know how hungry they are and how much they need. It says on the tin that my Ds is meant to have 3 bottles a day..somedays he has less and somedays he can have an extra 2. Just go with what works :)

[Rell]

It is so hard whe you start out bottle feeding because there is so little info out there.
Both my kids were bottle fed and both were very different. DD would drink more then the tin says and feed every 4 hours, DS would feed every 2- 3 hours and drink about half what the tin says. Both continued to grow (DS a bit slower) and were healthy.
It sounds like your DS is getting the enough, they won't drink if they arn't hungery. All babies are different so have different needs. Keep up what you are doing, your doing a great job :thumbsup:
As for the reheating formula, reheating formula can cause nasty bacteria to grow in the milk and up set your bubs tummy. Try making up less and if you bub drinks it all and is still hungery top up with a bit more. Sometimes I would keep a bottle of made up formula in the fridge (only for 24hrs) just for top ups.
Hopefully soon your baby will get into a patten and you won't waste so much formula.
Hope this helps

[InSaneOne]

i make up what i think she will drink which is generaly about 200mls. i boil the water then cool in fridge. then i pour the cooled boiled water into the bottle and heat in the microwave until warm. then i add the formula to the water. that way if bubs doesn't drink it all straight away i put the rest in the fridge and heat that up when she is next hungry. as her appetite varies so much it is easier for me as i am not re-heating the milk.

but i would make up half the amount for your bubs until he gets used to it and slowly increase it after a few days at each new level. if they are hungry they will let you know.

[Lunar]

Hey Nizz, ignore the tin! If I was to go off that I would think I was starving Kailah! But she is growing fine!(as you know) Just make up whatever he is drinking and let him tell you when he is hungry for more. But don't make the mistake of saving feed for later. If he doesn't finish the bottle discard it, this is when bacteria grows, when the milk is heated up and then cooled and then heated up again after bubs has been drinking from it.
If K doesn't finish her bottle I let her play or sleep until she's hungry again (that could be anywhere from 2-4.5hrs) and then I make her a fresh bottle. I sterilize bottle then fill with required boiled water then put them in the fridge, heat up the water then add formula. The bottle is good for 1 hour only after it is made up (unless you make them all up for the next 24 hrs then store them in the fridge that is ok, but I prefer it to be 'fresh' IYKWIM?)
It will get better just give it time. It is something very new for him.
Formula tastes very different from breast milk, he may just need time to get used to the taste.

[Will]

Thanks you guys! I will do up the bottles with 120mls and go from there, that way i will waste less!! I didnt even think of that lol, i used to be practical, but i think that went out the window with the brain cells i lost during pregnancy lol. Thanks so much you guys, you have really helped us!!!