Help with starting bottles at 6 mths

[small1]

Hi, can anyone give me some advice on moving to bottles at 6 months. 

My lo turned 6 months on friday and since the babysitter got him to take a bottle saturday night I decided this was  a sign and to go for it.  But things are a bit hit and miss, I am not 100% sure of his hunger signs, so we are going through a lot of bottles with only a little feed at each go.  I don't know whether this is because he is used to smaller feeds via the breast or whether I need to try to extend his feeds out.

Should he be on a 4 hour routine, or should I start on 3 hours then extend it ?
How much should he be on in a day as he has only just started weaning?

Since you can only keep a bottle for an hour once heated, if he has some, then wants to leave it a while, can I reheat it during that hour for a second attempt as he only likes it very warm?

He also at the moment makes sounds like he is hungry then when I feed him, he takes a bit, then cries and pushes it away, then pulls it towards him, puts it in his mouth and cries and pushes it away.  What could this mean?  Too cold?  Teething?

Any advice would be a help,
thanks
ali

[Noelle]

Hi 

How long in between feeds is he on right now?  At 6 months, most babies are at 4, but since he's bf it is possible to still be at 3-3.5 

To start with, I would probably offer 6 oz.  If he drinks it all, offer another ounce...if he drinks all of that, add another, etc.

Personally, I always gave the bottle and put any leftovers right back in the fridge and used it the next time.  The books say to not reuse it because of bacteria, etc. (and because they don't want to be responsible for a sick baby  )  You'll have to do with what you are comfortable with.

I would guess he is maybe crying with the bottle when you offer it because he is used to/expects to BF with you?  Or have you given a bottle to him successfully before?  Other things you could try is a faster nipple if he is currently on the slowest one.

Here is a link too that may help....

https://babywhispererforums.com/index.php/topic,35385.0.html

Let us know!! 

[small1]

Thanks for this, currently we are doing about 100 bottles a day, but hoping to eventually cut it down to 4.  At the moment he tends to have about 3 oz, then if you try another half hour later will take another 3oz, but bf babies do take less, so maybe in time he will be able to take a lot more.

Cheers
Ali