How can I get my breastfed baby to take a bottle?

My 5-month-old breastfed baby refuses to take a bottle when I'm at work. I don't want to wean him suddenly, but I feel I have no choice. Do you have any suggestions?

This is actually a fairly common problem. Babies start expressing their opinions very early. Try different bottles and nipples to see if your son accepts one type more readily than another. Some mothers have successfully induced their babies to take a bottle by holding the baby in a totally different position to when they breastfeed. Try putting him in an infant or car seat so he is semi-upright, and then feed him the bottle while facing him. Once he's used to taking a bottle, you can hold him as you usually would for feeds. Another suggestion that sometimes works even as early as five months is to try giving your baby formula or expressed breast milk from a cup. Feeds will take a little more patience, but for some babies the cup is different enough from the bottle that they will accept it. A shot glass or small see-through plastic juice glass works well. Put him in an upright position in your left arm and bring the cup to his mouth, tilting it gently until a small bit goes in. He'll actually begin to lap and then to drink it. You can even use a hollow-handled medicine spoon to do the same thing. Often after you've tried this, the baby will go ahead and take a bottle because cup feeding isn't nearly as much fun as bottle-feeding - babies enjoy sucking. Once he can feed using a cup fairly proficiently, then you have an alternative for when you are at work - either cup or bottle - and his carer can try either. Again, you may not be able to get 8 ounces from a cup, but I hope your baby will take enough to get him through the time you're gone. Good luck!