Weaning a 9 months old - help!

[lisa1723]

My son is now just over 9 months and has only ever been breast fed. Once he started on solid food he was not that interested in milk so has only had a morning and night feed for the last couple of months.

With him only taking such a little amount of milk now I want to try and move the evening feed to 4 and give cow's milk before he goes to bed (he just won't take formula) so I don't always have to been the one putting him to bed.

This is working great and he now sleeps so much better, however having a problem in what to get him to drink this out off. I think I have brought nearly ever sort of drinking cup I can find but he doesn't seem that interested it taking it from them. He has never had a bottle before but it now seems to be the only thing he will drink the milk from, but I really don't want to get him used to a bottle at 9 months.

Help, tips and advise would be great.

[Jacksmommy]

You can try a soft spout sippy cip, but I have to strongly discourage you from putting cow's milk in it until your baby is at least 12 months old. You really want him to get breastmilk, and if that's not doable then formula. Cow's milk is just not good for a baby that young.

[ngregory]

I think that advent makes a flat soft sippy spout. My daughter seemed to really like that one.
I would also suggest waiting to give milk at this age. I actually gave all 3 of my children milk/soy at 11 months. I hope this helps and good luck

[maksmom]

At 9 months your son should really be getting more breastmilk than solids at this point. Cow's milk should wait until he is a year.

The advent sippy is a good place to start, perhaps filling it with expressed breastmilk.

[lisa1723]

Not tried the advent one, so will get one of those.

Have been advised by the Health Visitor to give him Cow's milk as an extra feed. Still going to do the 2 breastfeeds a day to ensure he gets all the goodness but add in a cow's milk feed before bed. He's not put on any weight since xmas and has even losts some weight. He is eating 4 big meals a day including lots of dairy products. He just not interested in breastmilk anymore. Since giving him cow's milk for a week he has put on 9oz which is a great improvement.

[ngregory]

If that is working for you and he is not having any problems and your doctors say its ok......then continue with what you are doing. At 9 months all of my 3 kids were eating solids and having a bottle or being breastfead. I would personally wait to give cows milk untill he is closer to his 1st birthday but since you are consulting with a professional I am sure they know whats best.

[Jacksmommy]

What is a "Health Visitor"? If you're sure you want to give your baby dairy products at this point, then I would at least stick to cultured products like yogurt and kefir. They're appropriate for his age whereas cow's milk is not.

[Willowave]

My DR said to go ahead and give whole cows milk at 6 months. Baby had teeth and was eating solids, and pumping wasn't working for me. So he had milk with his meals ect. He still nursed a couple times a day, whenever he wanted to. Also before bed of course. I nursed him til he was 1 1/2. He is now 9 and in the gifted program at school and has no food allergies. So I think it's safe if thats what she wants to use and was ok'ed by a health professional. I don't have much for advice because my baby was old enough to understand when I weaned him. I just had to tell him no nurse and found something else for him to do. He handled it very well. The one I am nursing now, however, is 1 and I am trying to cut down. She is not so reasonable.
So the lady asked for advice...any takers?

[ngregory]

I am trying to wean my 1 year old as well and what I have been doing is keeping really busy. Thanks to my older two kids being involved in different sports we are out a lot and my youngest is then kept busy by watching them and doesnt even think about feeding. When she does get hungry I usually give her a bottle or a sippy cup with soy( my older 2 are allergic so i keep soy in the house) or I give her some food. She fought me the first couple of days but seems to be getting used to it. I am down to breastfeeding once in the morning and once at night.
I found that the key is just being busy....but with 3 kids that is not so hard. LOL
good luck

[Maret00]

I would not give milk until 11mo or more have you tried soymilk but my son used the NUK soft cups and did fine. I would try keeping him on breastmilk as much as possible.

[Rosawyn]

Since breastmilk actually has more fat and callories than solid food it's only logical that he lost weight when he started eating so much solids so young. I would encourage you to try cutting back his solid food intake, especally "filler" carbs like cereal, crakers, rice, pasta, etc and see if you can get him to nuse a bit more often during the day. Does he also drink water and/or juice? If he's only nursing twice and that's all the fluids he's getting, I'd also be concerned.

[CandiceJones]

What does everyone think babies have used for thousands of years when breastmilk was no longer available? My children would never take formula either so cow milk is fine, goat's milk is actually easier on the stomach if you can get it. Make sure your milk is whole milk though to give your baby enough fat and calories for brain development.

As far as cups, my son never knew how to tip a bottle, so therefore couldn't figure out how to tip a cup at first. My daughter currently in the same boat. What I have found to be the best transitional cup was the cup with no spill rubber straws. They can suck and don't have to worry about tilting to get their drink ending in less frustration.

As far as the actual weaning, if you're still having trouble with him wanting to nurse, I suggest going by the sign of the moon. It's almost impossible I've found to find it on the internet, but there are calendars that have the signs of reins, hips, thighs, knees, shoulders, etc. The moon moves up and down these signs. The time to wean is as the moon travels down the reins, not up. Your milk will dry faster, there will be less fussiness and it's just a better experience all around. My great-grandmother told me about this and weaned all her children by it, my mom weaned all us, I have weaned my son and next month will be weaning my 1 year old daughter by it. IT WORKS!!!!

[amkari]

[QUOTE=CandiceJones;664253]What does everyone think babies have used for thousands of years when breastmilk was no longer available? My children would never take formula either so cow milk is fine, goat's milk is actually easier on the stomach if you can get it. Make sure your milk is whole milk though to give your baby enough fat and calories for brain development.QUOTE]

I'm a huge history buff and bookworm and my interest is mostly pre-industrial age...

Actually, until recent times (past couple hundred yrs) it really wasn't common for most families to own cattle at all. As a result cows milk was not generally available to any but the very rich. Much more common was for a close relative or friend to take the baby and nurse with her own. In Victorian times wet nursing (hiring a lactating woman to nurse your children) was extremely common among the wealthier set. In the US prior to the Civil War many southern plantation families used slave women as wet nurses.

Very rarely was milk from any other mammal used for infants and generally ONLY if there was not a human milk source available. The bottom line is that we are not cattle, their nutritional needs are drastically different from ours and their milk reflects that. Goat's milk is slightly better, I do agree there... I have a close friend who raised both her kids on goat's milk when she couldn't nurse. BUT formula (while I really do hate the stuff personally) is engineered to mimic human milk as much as possible.

Regardless of history, this is a case of "know better, do better" in that we now know that formula is a healthier choice than straight cow's milk for various reasons.

[CandiceJones]

I was trying to be quick in my reply and I agree breastmilk or formula is best. I also said when NO breastmilk was available... that INCLUDED wet nurses. I really hate that wet nurses have become a taboo in this culture. (like that baby in the news a few months ago who had his stomach pumped in the case he might have nursed from the wrong mother) My great aunt was sent home from the hospital every time with an extra baby to nurse because another mother was having medical problems!

Historically, horsemilk was also used as an alternative as well. I myself have had it and my great-grandfather was born premature and too small to nurse so was supplemented horse milk. Like my own children, formula is refused by the baby in this case. Goat's milk is easier to digest and has less chances for allergic reactions. My sister in law was raised on goat's milk because she was allergic to cow milk and couldn't afford formula.

Regardless of "know better, do better" sometimes there really is no alternative if a child refuses to drink it or can't digest it!

[Maret00]

Weaning at such a young age isnt recomended. WHO recomends nursing until 2 years if not longer. They even said with the bad flu season predicted in the fall that breastfeeding is the best to protect the baby from or getting a bad case of the N1H1.