BabyWhispererForums.com

EAT => Bottle Feeding => FAQ's - Frequently Asked Questions & Related Information - Bottle => Topic started by: * Paula * on July 01, 2006, 20:55:16 pm

Title: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on July 01, 2006, 20:55:16 pm
Hi All,

My DS is nearly 1 and have been wondering what would be the best way to change him over to Cows Milk.

He has had cows milk in his cereal since he was 6 months and has been eating dairy's etc for a while now so know that there is no allergies.

Please can you let me know how you did it or how you are planning on doing it.

Thanks for your vote.

Paula
Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: Ennypen on July 01, 2006, 21:06:47 pm
I have exactly the same query at the moment! You beat me to posting it!

Can't wait to see the results!

Helen xx
Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: * Paula * on July 01, 2006, 21:14:04 pm
I know it is all too confusing.

You hear so many different things, that my head is actually spinning from what people have told me.

Really looking forward to seeing what the outcome is going to be.

Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: Ennypen on July 01, 2006, 21:22:36 pm
William was born on July 18th 2005 so Tom and he are pretty close in age looking at our tickers!

Helen xx
Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: ryan's mum on July 01, 2006, 21:25:36 pm
we slowly started changing over , only cos we had formula to use up . we started with the morning bottle of cow's milk first to see how he was during the day. by 12 months he was only having 2 bottles of milk/feed anyway as he  had dropped the other 2 . when we used up the formula we changed both bottles to cow's milk .Like you he had been having cow's milk in cereal from about 10 months.When he had been on cow's milk for about a month we noticed his sleep had got worse at night and he was a little more constipated.We switched to rice milk after talking with a woman on holiday , this helped with sleep , eczema and reflux , so we have stuck with rice milk.
Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: jay&danny'smummy on July 01, 2006, 21:27:03 pm
I started by giving ds cows milk for the morning bottle, and then continued giving his follow-on milk in the evening. I did this over about a week until I had used it all up so it was not wasted. Like you he had been having cow's milk with his breakfast for a while so the change never seemed to bother him.
HTH :)
Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: Ennypen on July 03, 2006, 20:39:54 pm
Well I bit the bullet and changed William's morning bottle to cows milk on Sunday and he loves it. He doesn't seem to drink so much as he did formula - but he is having about 6oz which seems enough to me seeing as he has milk on his weetabix and cheese and wotnot as well as his 9oz of formula before bed.

Have you decided what to do for Tom yet?

H xx
Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: Lana on July 04, 2006, 15:36:15 pm
We switched over all together at 12 months.  Once the formula was gone he got milk ;D and only in a sippy cup. 
Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: Wife and Mummy. on July 04, 2006, 16:38:26 pm
ok well i was always told that you make a bottle as usaul say 6oz but only put 5oz of formular in and 1oz cows milk and so on for the rest of the week{ie 5oz formular 2oz cows milk,4oz formular 3oz cows milk}if you get my drift.hope this helps a little
Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: * Paula * on July 04, 2006, 18:10:43 pm
Hi Helen,

We were given the go ahead to start cows milk yesterday.  To be honest I am quite nervous about switching over.  I think I am going to do it on Saturday when I am at home all day so that I can watch him.

I know he has had cows milk in cereal etc, but just want to be sure KWIM.

Congrats on the change, I am pleased to hear that it went so well.

Paula x
Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: Ennypen on July 04, 2006, 19:02:47 pm
Hiya Paula - thats exactly why I did it on Sunday lol... so I could watch out.. but he's truly not shown any difference at all... hope it continues... Good Luck when you start.. don't be nervous!

Helen xxx
Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: * Paula * on July 04, 2006, 19:26:49 pm
Thanks Helen,

I will let you know how it goes.

Paula x
Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: * Paula * on July 09, 2006, 19:04:03 pm
Hi Helen,

Right we did it.  On Saturday morning I got up and gave Thomas a bottle of cows milk instead of formula, and he did not notice any difference at all.  He drank exactly the same amount that he usually did with his formula.  I still gave him his night time bottle as formula as I thought I might as well finish it.  We did the same today and he seems fine with it.

The one thing I noticed yesterday was that he was a bit hungry earlier than normal, but have decided I will up his cereal so that it covers it.

I have noticed that (and sorry if TMI) he has been pooing a lot more, but am not sure if this is cause of the milk.  It is not runny at all, just his normal texture, but in the past 2 days he has had 8 poohs.  3 yesterday and 5 today  :o  Could this be something else like teething - or is it just his belly getting used to the milk?

Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: Ennypen on July 09, 2006, 19:09:57 pm
Yeah Will has been pooing a bit more... I guess the change to the cows milk has been loosening things up a bit but like you said its nothing nasty and he's not poorly with it or suffering excess wind or anything... I am supposing that once his system is used to the change things will get a bit more regular again lol...

I am finishing up my tubs of formula and am going to then turn to all cows milk.... might give him the occasional drink of the growing up milk stuff to boost the vits and stuff though...

Good to hear Tom is doing well xxxx
Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: * Paula * on July 09, 2006, 19:14:49 pm
Oh I am pleased to hear that it is the norm - but boy, all those poops are just wearing me out lol - although in a way I am quite pleased as he has been very prone to constipation.

Title: Re: Cows Milk
Post by: LŠuren on July 11, 2006, 14:56:27 pm
I have stickied this topic - hope you don't mind ladies.  ;D
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on July 11, 2006, 19:40:07 pm
No problem at all.

We will be switching completely to cows milk tomorrow as Thomas is 1 - he has taken to it quite well, so he should not notice the change in the last bottle.

Although the poop is still quite a lot but seen as though it is still normal consistency, i am not worrying too much.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: JennĐ on July 11, 2006, 20:10:45 pm
From another view point: we tried 1/3 milk, 2/3 formula.  Green, runny and very smelly was the result.  Got input from my dear co-mod in allergies.  Tried less milk per day.  Same result, but smaller scale.  As she is cool with cheese, yogurt and ice cream (shh!)  we are now trying lactose free milk.  With luck she can grow into the regular stuff someday.      ;D
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on July 11, 2006, 20:14:18 pm
Thanks for letting me know that.

He was having 1 bottle formula and 1 bottle cows milk.  Tomorrow it will be straight cows milk - so will see how it goes - maybe it is the two being mixed.  Anyhow, am just going to monitor him and see how he goes.

Ice cream  ;) your secrets safe with me.  Thomas does well on yogurts, cheese etc and ice-cream shhhhhh - how can you say no to a baby when you are eating it yourself? :D
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: *Natasha* on July 16, 2006, 01:00:47 am
Hi Girls,

Thought i would jump in Catherine is on cow's milk already we changed early as we went away for 2 weeks and didn't want to fuss with formula. I got the go ahead from our CHN. Just a question for you guys when are you going to drop the 2 bottles all together Catherine has 4ozs milk in a cup with breakfast and dinner and then 2x7oz bottles in the morning and before bed.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on July 26, 2006, 13:18:55 pm
Hi Natasha,

Sorry for the delay in replying to you.

To be honest, I am not sure when I am going to drop the two bottles.  At the moment Thomas is really enjoying his milk, (makes a change), and don't want to start messing around with it. 

He has never drank formula from a Sippy, but am thinking that over the next few weeks, i might try and give him some cows milk in his sippy and see how he goes.

But at the moment I like the way he is.   ;D

When are you thinking of dropping the bottles?

Paula x
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: GabrielleD on July 26, 2006, 13:52:33 pm
Since DS refused to drink pure cows milk, we are trying the sneaky approach on his pediatrician's recommendation. He had 2 oz of cow's milk and 4 oz of formula mixed together this morning. I was pretty anxious to see if he would drink it, but he drank it without problems. So I will continue to do this for a week, then increase the proportion to 50%-50%, then 75% cow's milk-25% formula, then all milk. That's the plan, anyway - DS may have something to say about it though.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: ~Faye~ on July 26, 2006, 15:01:05 pm
Thats what we did with Shay. We tried just pure cows milk at first and he spat it out, so we mixed it. He always has 9oz bottles for bed and we just slowly added an extra oz of cows to the formula every few nights til it was totally cows milk again. The only problem is he still wouldn't drink it so I put a tiny bit of honey in which now he won't drink it without ::). Got to wean him off that now ::)

Faye :-*
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on July 26, 2006, 18:51:52 pm
I must admit we were quite lucky.  Thomas was never really fussy on his formula, so when we switched to Cows Milk and he took to it straight away, we were really pleased.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: *Natasha* on July 29, 2006, 06:39:04 am
Catherine was also never a big formula fan but when we made the switch to cows milk she LOVED it and drinks it all most days. We have now dropped the morning bottle and DD now has 4ozs milk in her sippy cup with breakfast,morning snack and dinner. She still has the night bottle of 5-6ozs which i tried to wein but she screamed for it. Mind you though a few times last week we weren't home for her night bottle so she has her milk in a cup drank it no worries  ::) So it seems she only wants her bottle at night when we are at home. However we will be away at Christamas and i want that night bottle gone by then.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: LŠuren on July 29, 2006, 06:50:03 am
Paula
It states in my Gina Ford cook book 12oz from 1year, I will have a better look and post the info here.........  I remember you asked this a few weeks ago.  ;)
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: LŠuren on July 29, 2006, 19:21:52 pm
From one year it is important that large volumes of milk are discouraged, as this can reduce a baby’s appetite for solid food.

At this age, you baby needs a minimum intake of 350m (12fl oz) a day, and no more than 600ml (20fl oz), inclusive of milk used in food.

Try to abandon the bottle, and offer all drinks in a beaker from now on. Do encourage you child to keep up their fluid intake with water and diluted unsweetened fruit juice although drinking too much before a may considerably reduce a baby’s appetite, so offer solids first at avoid this happening.

taken from Gina Ford - baby & toddler cook book
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on July 29, 2006, 19:25:51 pm
Hi Lauren,

Thanks for that information.

Thomas as the moment will probably take between 8/9oz in the morning (including his cereal), and will have about 9/10oz in the evening before bed.  He is becoming less interested in his morning bottle, but the evening one he is very attached to.

I have tried giving him milk in his beaker, and he just spits it out - I am going to keep on persevering though.

Thanks for looking into this for me.

Cheers

Paula x  ;D
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: shelliz on July 29, 2006, 19:27:15 pm
Does anyone have any experience with switching from breastmilk to cows milk?

TIA
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: LŠuren on July 29, 2006, 19:33:14 pm
http://www.ehow.com/how_12785_start-1-year.html & here http://www.lalecheleague.org/FAQ/weanhowto.html
Shelby - Just found this, not sure if its any good?
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: shelliz on July 29, 2006, 20:03:18 pm
Thanks Lauren..I'll check it out!
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: Ruggie on August 03, 2006, 11:39:24 am
Hi

We gave DS cows milk at home or at family and friends home. I used the remaining of the can for when we were out and about, easier than to try and keep cows milk cool/fresh. :)
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: EmMUK74 on August 14, 2006, 09:11:00 am
we have swapped to cows milk because the carton of formula ran out, but we are having trouble getting Rachel to take it from a cup.  she takes water perfectly but the milk gets spat back out.  I am going to persevere with the cup for the morning feed and keep the bottle for the evening for a week I think and then try cup at night.

I know you are meant to drop the bottle at 12 months but this seems impossible for the night time drink.
so my question, anyone got any suggestions for how to get the transition to cup to work, especially at night?

thanks
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on August 15, 2006, 20:12:46 pm
Hi Erin,

Most HV today do say that you should try to get your lo off bottles by the time that they are 12 months.  Me personally, I am going to let DS keep his bottle for a little while longer.

DS is the same, he drinks water / juice from his cup with no problems at all, but is not really intersted in it when it comes to his milk.

What we have started doing is at meal times offering him his cup with his normal liquid in it, and a cup with his milk in it and keep on offering it to him.

I am positing a link on here, where Callums mum has posted some suggestions from the BW book - Hope this will help you a bit.

https://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=55022.0

Let us know how you get on.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: Ennypen on August 15, 2006, 21:33:50 pm
Paula its cool to hear you say that you are going to let Tom keep his bottle for a bit longer. I made the same decision a week or so ago with William.

Will will sip milk and water from a sippy cup but he doesnt drink enough from one to make it a good way for him to drink enough milk during the day - especially his bedtime milk.  I keep a sippy of water and one of milk around all day (refreshing the milk regularly of course so I dont give him a tum ache or anything..) so he sips at it and drinks some of each throughout the day.

When it comes to his bedtime he loves nothing more than his bottle of milk and to me its a really sweet important time - in fact its the only time during the day I get to give him a cuddle and have that mommy/baby time like we used to have. We are still using formula at the moment and when I am at my moms I use the growing up milk, as I am wanting to make sure he gets the iron and extra nutrients etc that the formula/growing up milk contains.

I have made no decision as to when the bedtime milk will be cows milk or when I will stop using the bottle - maybe when he is confident to take a sustained drink from his sippy cup. Until then I think one bottle a day won't hurt him and since its at home and its special for us I want to hold onto it for a while lol.. who cares what the Health Visitor says lol..

H xxxx
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: JennĐ on August 16, 2006, 01:36:37 am
Right with you Helen!!  One bottle at bedtime here too.  Sometimes in the afternoon if she has not been drinking enough.   Only sippy cups at home.  DD is on lactose free milk for now.  In a few weeks we will see if the probiotics have helped enough to go to plain milk.  I totally agree with the snuggle factor!!!  It's the only sustained cuddling I get these days.  Otherwise it's quick cuddle, then bebop off to something else.  ;)
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: ~Faye~ on August 16, 2006, 12:03:44 pm
We still give a bottle of milk at bed time, in fact he expects it. We had been to my sisters at the weekend and Shay went to sleep on their bed, when we got home and put him in his cot he took his dummy out and asked for his milk. To be honest I will stop giving him a bottle at night when he is ready to give it up, I don't see the harm in it and it is his bed time routine. Like you say Jenn, it is the few times you actually get a snuggle :) Make the most of it I say ;D

Faye :-*
Title: Switching from Bottels to Cup & Cow's Milk
Post by: stuckingermany on August 27, 2006, 06:53:40 am
Hello,
     My little guy is 11 1/2 months. We have been traveling a lot lately, so I feel like I am falling behind on transitioning him out of his bottles. Our current schedule is below. I am confused about when to switch to cow's milk and transitioning the two bottles we have left to cups. By the way he never would drink from a sippy cup, but at 9 months I tried a cup with a straw and it works great! Since he is coming up on 1 year, is it more important to switch to cow's milk or get him off the bottles?
Thanks!

7-wake
7:15-bottel with formula 230ml
8:00-breakfast
9:00-10:30 Sleep
11:00 snack with water (cup)
12:00 lunch
1:30-3:30 Sleep
4:00 snack with formula in cup
6:00 dinner
7:00 bath
7:30 bottle with formula 230 ml/sleep
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: home alone on September 02, 2006, 19:34:21 pm
Maybe my lo liked cow's milk or maybe it's the bottle but I introduced the cow's milk in the bottle then slowly switch to a cup.
It seemed like she like the comfort of the bottle so, it didn't matter what was in there.
I tried soy milk as well on the bottle.  No resistence at all.

I am also slowly replacing bottle with regular cup during the day but not taking away the bottle before bedtime.
I do offer her sippy first then give her the bottle.
I think they will give it up eventually :-[  but then again I met a 3 yr old with a bottle so I am not sure if they give up willingly or have to take it away.
Title: Re: Switching from Bottles to Cup & Cow's Milk
Post by: LŠuren on September 10, 2006, 10:07:03 am
Calum is 1 in a couple of weeks and he has already started drinks cows milk for his morning bottle and formula for his bedtime bottle.

At first he wasn't sure if it, but I realised it was too cold for him - now I have taken the chill off the cows milk he loves it. I have half a box of follow left and once its gone its gone.....

Calum also refuses any more that 1 or 2oz of milk in asippy,  but will down 7oz of water in a sippy no bother.

I enjoy the bottle feeding time with him and I am happy he takes his water on his own form a sippy or a straw cup.

our current routine is;
 
w;  :-\  has a bad cold
E0730 7 or 8oz of cows milk in a bottle
A
S1030 - 1100
E1200 - lunch with water or juice
A
S 1430 - 1530
E 1600 dinner with water or juice
A (inc snack- with our dinner)
E1830 10 - 14oz of formula
A bath
S 1930/2000
Title: Re: Switching from Bottles to Cup & Cow's Milk
Post by: LŠuren on September 10, 2006, 10:12:05 am
Some toddlers greedily gulp whole cow's milk right off the bat. But because milk has a different texture, taste, and even temperature than breast milk or formula, some kids are hesitant to make the switch. If that's the case for your toddler, try mixing whole milk with some breast milk or formula at first (say, one part whole milk and three parts of his usual stuff). Then slowly shift the ratio until he's drinking 100 percent whole milk.

You might also try giving him just a little bit of whole milk at a time — a few tablespoons as a treat — until he asks for more. Or mix it with some cereal. And remember, just because your toddler is drinking his own milk from a cup now doesn't mean that you need to stop nursing him. Just make sure that milk isn't his primary source of nourishment. He's grown to where he needs more.
 
If your child drinks more than two to three glasses of milk during the day, he may not have room at dinner for the other foods that he needs to round out his diet. (He needs plenty of iron-rich foods like leafy green vegetables and meat, for example, because milk, unlike formula, does not contain iron.) So if your toddler's thirsty, get him in the habit of drinking water throughout the day, too.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: rubysmum2 on November 16, 2006, 14:20:38 pm
 hi
totally agree with keeping the bedtime bottle!!!
my lo has never really taken to her milk much prefers her solids just like her mum!!!! she  is now 11months old and i switched from formula to cow and gate growing up milk 3 days ago and she loves it she now takes about 5/6 oz for bedtime nut i struggle to get her to take even 2oz for breakfast! i have tried giving the milk first then her cereal and also cereal first then milk but doesnt seem to want it either way round!! she drinks water throughout the day from her beaker really well so at the moment i am toying with not even offering milk at breakfast just giving her beaker with water what do you suggest!!

ps  nice to see you live close by as i am from ledbury !! ;D
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on November 16, 2006, 19:27:22 pm
Cara,

I would say that as long as your lo is getting enough milk in her cereal and has plenty of yogurts and cheeses throughout the day, then it is fine not to have a morning bottle.  They do still need at least 21 oz of calcium a day, even after they are 1.

HTH's

Paula x
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: rubysmum2 on November 17, 2006, 11:23:44 am
hi
yes she gets lots of dairy and ,ilk products within her solids so she definately gets her quota for the day.
this morning i gave her breakfast and gave her her beaker with water and she was quite contented with that then about half an hour later i put 2oz of milk in another beaker and offered her that she took a little sip threw it to the side and went and grabbed her water beaker!!! so not gonna stress myself out to much about it now as i know she is getting everything she needs.
thanks cara xxx
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: momofclaire on December 16, 2006, 02:55:51 am
I just started cows milk with my daughter who turned one this week.  She seems to be tolerating it fine but she is also having more BM's.  Is this common? 
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: LŠuren on December 16, 2006, 09:32:38 am
I just started cows milk with my daughter who turned one this week.  She seems to be tolerating it fine but she is also having more BM's.  Is this common? 

This is quite normal.  ;)
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: Raff on February 07, 2007, 09:53:46 am
Hi
tom is 13 months today. I didn't find his usual formula milk at the shops and had to buy a different one. However, he didn't like it, but didn't cry or anything (he is not the type of baby that will get too upset anyway..).so I was wandering if it's the right time to switch to cow's milk. He is on 18 oz a day (morning, afternoon, evening) plus other cow's dairies. I thought of starting with his afternoon bottle and give him some cows milk in a beaker. What type of milk should I use? Fresh or UHT cows milk?
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on February 07, 2007, 13:55:07 pm
The one bottle a day sounds good.  I would just keep an eye out to watch for any reactions.  We use Fresh milk for a DS and he is happy with it.  Just makes it that much easier that he has the same milk as DP.  Just make sure that it is Full Fat as your lo will need the extra fatty acids in it.

HTH's
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: KathrynK on February 07, 2007, 14:04:53 pm
hi there

We have taken the plunge this week and switched Sophie to cow's milk for her morning bottle (we are on 2- one on waking & one at bedtime). It's been 3 days now and she's
drunk just as much as usual so I am going to switch her bedtime one too.
I don't know why I have been nervous about doing this- she doesn't seem to have noticed anything is different so I feel a bit silly!  ::)

I do have one question- she drinks water from a beaker during the day. Shall I continue like this or does she need additional milk during the day now it's cow's, instead of water?
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on February 07, 2007, 14:09:10 pm
Kathryn, Thomas never has any other milk during the day, he just has his 1 cup of an evening - when he will drink it  ::)  It is completely up to you if you want to offer her milk during the day with her snacks.  it could be a good way to start introducing milk into a sippy for her.

As long as you are happy that she is having her quota for the day.

HTH's
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: gemmah on February 08, 2007, 11:23:44 am
Hello,

Alot of you say you give 9-10oz for bedtime feed, is this from bottle? I want a bottle for LO that has more than 9oz but can't find 1??

Also my Mum said she just let me stay on formula for my bedtime milk till I was older, any problem with this?

Thanks :)
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on February 08, 2007, 12:36:49 pm
I think the Nuk bottles hold 10oz. My Avent ones hold 9.

Most people just top the bottle up towards the end.

I don't see a problem with formula for bed time at all - how long were you thinking of carrying it on for?
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: gemmah on February 08, 2007, 12:52:21 pm
Well LO still not as good as eating her solids as others her age, so just wanted piece of mind that she getting what she needs.
Not sure how long for, I suppose till she eating a bigger amount!

When I tried hungrier baby milk she got constipated so she still on number 1 cow & gate.

Maybe just formula b4 bed?
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on February 08, 2007, 17:19:19 pm
I would stick to the formula just before bed as it can tend to fill them up and then they will refuse to eat food.

Have you tried the growing up milk?

We too tried the hungrier baby formula and it constipated our DS too, we also ended up switching back to the number 1 Cow and Gate
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: gemmah on February 08, 2007, 17:59:36 pm
Have not tried growing up milk, I thought it may constipate her also.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on February 08, 2007, 19:49:34 pm
We gave it to our DS on the odd occasion, and he seemed to do fine with it.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: kath79 on January 07, 2008, 01:17:55 am
My daughter is 11.5 months and I am thinking of switching her to cows milk..no allergies that we are aware of..anyone have any suggestions on what to try first..anything would be greatly appreciated..
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: grahamsmama on January 07, 2008, 01:25:06 am
Does she drink formula?  What temperature?  IMO, get them to take the formula room temp first, then add a little cows milk into the bottle of formula, gradually replacing the formula.  I just made smaller bottles and added the milk in cold from the fridge, first one ounce, then two, etc. 
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: kath79 on January 07, 2008, 01:39:26 am
Sorry yes she drinks formula..usually room temp.. usually three to four bottles a day..she prefers solids.. but has a bottle before bed..and sometimes (is teething too) wakes and will take a night feed too..however this week she has slept through..
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on January 07, 2008, 11:07:11 am
We made the switch cold turkey, and our lo did not notice the difference.  He had been having cows milk in his cereal sinc 6 months, so knew that he did not have any allergies.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: lyndsy_p on January 10, 2008, 18:28:36 pm
Hi Kath...or should I say cous'. I have absolutely no advice, but Paula and Lyn (grahamsmama) are fabulous!

Good to see you on the boards! :-*

Lyndsy
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: grahamsmama on January 10, 2008, 23:42:08 pm
Sorry yes she drinks formula..usually room temp.. usually three to four bottles a day..she prefers solids.. but has a bottle before bed..and sometimes (is teething too) wakes and will take a night feed too..however this week she has slept through..

How does she do with a sippy? 

I guess there is not really a "right" answer.  If your baby takes a while to warm up to changes or you're concerned about a reaction, do the switch over gradually.  If she just goes with the flow and you're comfortable that she doesn't have a milk intolerance, try cold turkey.  You can always go back and do a more gradual switch if she complains!
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: gemmah on January 13, 2008, 21:03:09 pm
WE WENT STRAIGHT TO GOATS MILK, BECAUSE LO GOT SNOTTY NOSE AND DRY SKIN WITH COWS MILK. APPARENTLY GOATS MILK NEARER TO BREAST MILK.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: *Nicola* on October 24, 2008, 23:14:14 pm
Hiya girls

I'm reviving this thread :D Have absolutely NO idea what i did with DD1!

Callie is one and having about 6oz of formula morning and evening.  She sometimes has about 4oz in the afternoon but often doesn't bother with this bottle anymore.

So ...

If I want to offer cows milk at the morning feed do I still offer it in the bottle or should I offer it in the sippy cup?   

Do I warm the cows milk like I warm the bottle?

x
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: *Natasha* on October 24, 2008, 23:40:40 pm
That is up to you Nic but i was told at Mirelle's 12month check to get her off the bottle and offer in a sippy. I now give it to her in a sippy with breakfast and dinner and after her bath.
I heat it like i did her formula but with summer coming might offer it at room temp soon.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on October 25, 2008, 10:08:11 am
With Thomas we just switched cold turkey at 1.  He was running out of formula so when his formula was finished we just changed to cows milk.  We had no problems.  We also heated the cows milk as he hated cold milk.

I was not too worried about keeping the bottle, and he had his milk in a bottle until he was about 16 months.  When he started decreasing his milk intake, we then started offering it in a sippy.

If Callies is having a small amount of milk in the afternoon, perhaps you could try and offer that in a cup first to get her used to it, and once she is taking her milk well in her sippy cup you can then start switching the other two bottles.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: *Nicola* on October 25, 2008, 18:36:23 pm
If Callies is having a small amount of milk in the afternoon, perhaps you could try and offer that in a cup first to get her used to it, and once she is taking her milk well in her sippy cup you can then start switching the other two bottles.

Did this today.  She didn't want to sit and drink it like she did with the afternoon bottle but she did take it fine throughout teh afternoon and with dinner. 

Going to offer cows milk in cup tomorrow am and will offer it before/with breakfast.  Continuing to do bedtime formula in a bottle for the moment x
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on October 25, 2008, 20:19:14 pm
Great news that she drank it from a cup  ;D Let us know how tomorrow goes hun.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: *Natasha* on October 26, 2008, 04:05:41 am
That is great Nic it will take her a little while to get use to drinking more from a cup after she realises she won't be getting a bottle.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: *Nicola* on October 26, 2008, 19:12:54 pm
Today we only did one bottle :D

Cow's Milk in sippy this morning, didn't want much but had some with breakfast and throughout the morning.  Then had  milk again in sippy with lunch which is normal.  Offered cows milk in sippy at about 3pm when she would usually be looking for her bottle.  Took a good few oz no bother.  Kept looking for more and had some with some little baby oat biscuits.  Lots of milk with dinner again :D

Bottle of formula at bedtime :)

x
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on October 26, 2008, 20:26:47 pm
Great news Nic x
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: *Natasha* on October 26, 2008, 21:25:19 pm
Thats great Nic  ;)
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: *Nicola* on October 26, 2008, 21:54:55 pm
did you make any decisions Paula?
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on October 28, 2008, 09:42:01 am
 :-\ I am not too sure at the moment.

Going to wait for her to get over her bug as she is hardly eating or drinking anything.  Once she is feeling better, I may just make the jump and switch her pm bottle and see how it goes.  I am nervous about it though  :-\
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: *Nicola* on October 28, 2008, 19:14:16 pm
((Hugs)) hope she feels better soon xx

Well we officially only have a bedtime bottle now :)

This morning Callie had breakfast as soon as she woke, whole banana, whole crumpet, 4 oz cows milk and pack of raisins.  Cows milk with snack and lunch, cows milk with bolognaise and buttered bread for tea.  Eating much more solids now so much formula has gone.  7oz bottle of formula at bed but only wanted 4oz of it. 

She's a star :D
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on October 28, 2008, 21:17:43 pm
Wow, sounds like she is doing fantastic. 

Abi is still pretty much refusing all foods  ::) Think her throat is still sore, so am not pushing it.  She just keeps on shaking those piggie tales.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: *Nicola* on October 28, 2008, 22:10:35 pm
Awww bless her little piggie tails x
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: Benz on November 04, 2008, 10:25:19 am
Hi everyone..another way to make a switch from formular to cows milk is by gradually reducing the formular in the bottle and adding cows milk to it (25mls at a time) over a period of time.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on November 05, 2008, 21:13:00 pm
We started the transition of weaning the formula by mixing it with cows milk.

Today we did:-

Morning - 6oz formula - 1oz fresh milk
Afternoon - 5oz formula - 1 oz fresh milk
Bedtime - 8 oz formula (keeping this bottle the same for now)

She did fantastic, she drank 6 oz this morning and had the rest in her cereal - did not notice any difference.  This afternoon she drained her bottle ;D

Tomorrow we are doing 2oz fresh milk.  Fingers crossed it goes well.

We are offering small amounts of milk in Sippy with meals to get her used to the sippy.  She is not happy, but hopefully will get used to it.

Once she is over her growth spurt, I am going to change her routine around and offer milk with meals, hopefully by then she will be on just fresh milk by then.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: *Nicola* on November 10, 2008, 20:50:28 pm
How's it going Paula x
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on November 10, 2008, 21:19:06 pm
Hey Nic,

Well today was the first day on just cows milk.  We have been dropping an oz of formula per day.  She did fantastically.  This morning she took a few sips and then pushed it away.  I thought she did not like it, but she had some toast and then went back to it and guzzled down the whole 7oz.

She had another 7oz this afternoon at nursery and then 5oz before bed.

She seems to be doing really well.

Now we just have to try and get rid of the bottles, but am not in too much of a rush to do it.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: *Nicola* on November 10, 2008, 22:10:37 pm
That's great!!
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on January 13, 2009, 20:32:41 pm
It is completely up to you.  We warm as both DS and DD were used to drinking their formula warm. 

Let us know how it goes.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: campbellchick on January 29, 2009, 06:34:28 am
Hi Ladies, can I please jump into this thread and ask a question?  My dd is about to turn 1 tomorrow and I am going to start to introduce her to cows milk by slowly adding it to her formula.  She has been having it on her cereal just in the last few weeks and I also gave her a drink of it the other day and she did drink it some of it, but mainly spat it out (not sure if it was because it was plain cows milk or just cold) .  So my question is - once she is on cows milk, do I then drop a bottle/cup during the day?  She is currently taking 3 bottles a day (I am going to try to switch her to a sippee cup and get rid of the bottle completely like I did with ds when he was on full cows milk by 13 months).  So if she is on cows milk - is it okay to keep up 3 cups of milk a day or should I drop to 2?  She is in full-time daycare so I can ask them to give her some milk with lunch instead of when her bottle would have been?  I just can't remember with ds when he dropped from 3 to 2 cups of milk a day. 
Thanks,
Kerrie
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on January 29, 2009, 19:58:19 pm
Hi Kerry, I cannot believe she will be 1 tomorrow  :o where has time gone to?

I would be careful about dropping the feeds too quickly as there is a big growth spurt around the age of 1, so you don't want to drop it too quickly until the growth spurt is over.  We made this mistake :-\

I think it is fine to stick to 3 milk feeds during the day.  As long as you make sure that she is not filling up on her milk, and is eating plenty of solids.  Too much milk can cause them to become anaemic.  I would stick to no more than 20oz per day.  But this does not have to just include milk, it can include cheeses, yogurts, custards etc.

We dropped to 2 milk feeds when Abi has gone through her growth spurt as we found it was interferring with her appetite and she was not eating much at dinner time.

Hope this helps.

Paula x
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: campbellchick on January 30, 2009, 02:42:55 am
Thanks Paula, I do remember that hiccup you had with Abi's growth spurt and NW's from hunger...  I am glad you reminded me of that advice as I was just thinking last night that it might be time to drop a feed.  She didn't drink much of her bedtime bottle - she left almost the whole thing but hasn't been drinking much for the last few nights.  I think I'll leave it a little while longer before I think about dropping it and give her a chance to go through the GS first.  We are now giving her solids before 2 of her bottles (lunch-time and dinner time) and she only has the morning bottle as soon as she wake, then eats breakfast about 45mins - 1hr later.  I wasn't sure when to transition from making milk the primary source of nutrition (e.g. giving it before solids) to giving solids first.  Now that she is a year, I am assuming we are okay to stick to the solids first and give the bottles after?  The bedtime one is generally about 45mins - 1hr after her dinner (she has dinner, a bath, a bottle then bed) so I guess she is probably still reasonably full after dinner and she just likes it for the comfort  :-\
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on January 30, 2009, 10:38:13 am
HAPPY BIRTHDAY HOLLY ;D ;D

I would say it is ok to change breakfast and milk around.  We did this at 1 as Abi was never really interested in her breakfast after her milk.

She now has a bowl of porrige for breakfast and then 5oz cows milk.  We did the wean of 1 oz cows milk, in the formula, and cause she has had cows milk since 6 months in food, we dropped it by an oz every day, and within a week she was on full cows milk.  We still do formula at night though just cause we still have it left.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: campbellchick on February 02, 2009, 05:30:32 am
Thanks Paula - Holly had a nice little birthday.  And she took her first steps on her own that night too...

She is unfortunately sick again - I thought she really had lost interest in her bottles over the weekend so was wondering if I should drop one, but now it might just be because she isn't very well?  She has had fevers since yesterday afternoon.  I think I will hold off on everything including introducing cows milk until she starts feeling a little better!!!  You are lucky Abi took so well to the milk too.  Will be interesting when you run out of formula though - I wonder if she will switch that bedtime milk easily?
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on February 02, 2009, 20:04:13 pm
Yay on her taking her first steps, that is fantastic news.

Huge hugs hun, I am sorry she is not well, I would definitely hold off until she is feeling better.  Keep us posted on how you get on.
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: marisa.deo on September 21, 2009, 00:05:53 am
Hi there,
I'm having a horrible time switching my dd to cow's milk. She was breastfed solidly for over a year, although she was taking milk w/cheerios for 3 months. However, she will not take milk!!!
I've tried everything...both sippy and bottle, a bit of maple syrup or chocolate syrup, the only thing that worked (by worked I mean she drank 1.5 ounces of milk) I had to crush cheerios in it.
She gets plenty of dairy: yoghurt, cheese, sardines, and I've started giving her calcium supplements just to compensate...
But I am very stressed...does anyone know what else I can do???
Beyond the milk business my dd sleeps well, eats well, plays, well, a total pleasure...except when she sees milk coming her way...
Title: Re: Making the transition to cows milk at 12 months
Post by: * Paula * on September 21, 2009, 19:29:38 pm
Are you able to pump at all?  Perhaps you could try mixing EBM with some cows milk to allow your lo to get used to the falvour, and then slowly add more and more cows milk to the EBM?