Taking away the bottle?

Brandis - posted on 02/06/2010

Personally I think 15months is pretty late. I took my DD's away the week before her 1st birthday and my DS's away the week after his first birthday. I just stopped giving it to him- I started by removing a bottle feeding a day until there was only one and then just stopped that one. I had absolutely no problem with either child. You may have a problem because your son is older (which is why I think the bottle needs to go at 1- any longer and they form an emotional attachment to it and it's harder to get rid of).

If you take away the bottle, they will adapt to the sippy. My daughter wouldn't touch a sippy until literally the day after I stopped giving her the bottle. And I really hope you're not giving him a bottle to go to sleep- that is REALLY bad for their teeth. And if he's falling asleep with it you're going to have a lot bigger problem getting rid of it, but if you wait it will be even worse! It's going to involve crying, but just comfort and be strong!

Staci - posted on 02/05/2010

Our pediatrician said she likes to see the bottle gone by no later than 18 months, because it starts to affect their teeth. We have our 15 m.o. down to just a bedtime bottle, and that one should be gone within a few weeks. It has been a little tough because she won't use a pacifier, so the bottle is her "comfort suck", if you will, but we're almost there.

Lisa - posted on 02/03/2010

My 15 month old still gets one in the morning. We asked her peditrician and he said as long as the majority of her fluids are from a sippy cup, one bottle a day is NOT going to spoil or ruin her. She loves milk in a sippy cup and likes using a straw from time to time. Her morning bottle is like my cup of coffee at work, I use the older infant formula and the DR says this is better than regular milk since it has extra nutrients and SHA compounds that is lacking in milk

Kathy - posted on 02/02/2010

I took the bottle away at 12months and he was fine .That is what I was tolk at the calgary heath

Nicole - posted on 02/02/2010

I just took my sons bottle away last night. He was getting a 4 oz at bedtime and then an 8oz at 5 and he would go back to sleep until 8am. Well that all changed, I gave him a sippy at bedtime and he was up at 3am had another sippy screaming bloody murder because he knew the differance and then took another one at 6:30 am and never went back to sleep...I really liked our old routine. I hope he sleeps thru the night tonight. We talked all day that he is a big boy and big boys drink from sippys. Today when he has asked for a baba i tell him he is a big boy and baba's went bye bye.

Jessica - posted on 02/02/2010

Also! If she won't drink the milk in the sippy, try mixing some carnation instant breakfast vanilla with it! It has great nutrients in it, and tastes great. It worked with my daughter and her pediatrician loved that it gave her good vitamins and minerals.

Jessica - posted on 02/02/2010

I took my daughter's away at 12 months. Her pediatrician said the sooner the better! Same goes with the binky/pacifier. I only kept her on the bottle until she was one because it was easier to mix formula since most sippy cups don't have the measurements on the side. Also, I don't necessarily think she should have bedtime feedings. Bedtime feedings generally should stop around 6 months old. I noticed a lot of women posted that they give their kids bottles at bedtime. I was specifically told by my pediatrician NOT to do that! Sooo I don't know...

Kisha - posted on 02/02/2010

I began introducing the sippy cup to my son at 6 months, I would give him his juice in it sometimes and then more and more as the months went by, So he was completely off the bottle at 9 months.

Rachel - posted on 02/02/2010

what is a sippy cup?? my daughter is 15 months old and she drinks juice from a beaker with a soft top to it (which i think must be as bad as a teet as its the same material!) but she wont drink from anything else! I've tried her with the hard top beakers and she just throws them.. and when I give her something with a straw, she takes the straw out and puts it sideways in her mouth (like a dog would a bone).. i don't know what else i could give her?

Kianne - posted on 02/01/2010

Well i wasn't sure but i swapped the bottle for sippy cups and my twins are happy to drink milk from a sippy cup

Jessica - posted on 02/01/2010

My dentist said it was fine to have a night-time bottle for a little longer, but then in another month or so start putting water to make it less appealing.

Alexis - posted on 01/30/2010

No, I took my kids bottles away at one year, that was my deadline.

Mylene - posted on 01/29/2010

Whatever your gut tells you is the best time. I decided to reduce the frequency of bottles and use a sippy cup instead for his milk around 13 months. I started giving him his milk during the day in the sippy cup but still giving him a bottle in the evening and morning... Then changed the morning one to a sippy cup and finally the evening. The transition was pretty smooth over 2 weeks. Now he doesn't care about the bottles even when he sees an empty one in the cupboard. He knows the milk is in the cup now.

He still gets milk 3 or 4 times a day... but not from a bottle.

Alison - posted on 01/29/2010

Wow after reading this, I realize I really have to get my little one off the bottle more than I thought. She's 15 months, and has not taken to milk yet. She drinks water from sippy cups, and drinks formula from bottles. She still have 18-24 oz a day from one.

My daughter is already in the 3-5% weight percentage, so my peds have said to not push the issue, since she needs the calories. I had just told my husband I was going to cut her off cold turkey next week, or at least cut her down to just the one in the morning.

Ashlee - posted on 01/25/2010

my son only has 1 bottle a day and it is his night time bottle. After supper he gets 8oz of milk then its bath time and then bedtime same time and everything every night. But he does not like milk in his sippy. he will drink milk from a glass with a straw if his dad helps him but not mommy-he's such a card. He has been using a sippy since about 7 months so thats not the prob he just really wont drink milk in a sippy....... I guess we will have to sit with him and help him drink 8oz from a straw(wow thats gonna take a while)
oh well like everything else with these guys they are all ready at diff times and in diff ways good luck with what works for you!

Annette - posted on 01/25/2010

Hi, I just stopped giving my 15 month old her bottle. She loves drinking from a cup and a straw. So far so good:-) She starts with a small carton of soy milk (drinking from a straw) in the morning...a nice start to the day:-)

Best wishes!

Kelly - posted on 01/22/2010

Our son has had just one bottle a day, when he wakes up, since he turned one (three months ago). He loves milk and does well with sippy cups, but his morning bottle is like an adult's morning coffee - he's miserable without it! We are stopping the bottle tomorrow, and I am sad because it really means he's not a baby anymore :(

Melissa - posted on 01/21/2010

Our pediatrician suggested that our son be taken off the bottle at 12 months, so that's what we did and we had a pretty easy time with it.

Ashley - posted on 01/20/2010

Do you put ice in her juice and water? I know of a little boy who did the same thing, would not drink milk out of a sippy cup. I know that his mom was able to put ice in his cup with milk and he started to drink the milk from a sippy cup that way. Maybe it wouldnt hurt to give it a try.

Ashley - posted on 01/20/2010

Me daughters doctor told us that anywhere from 12 to 18 months to stop letting her have a bottle. I was able to get her off of a bottle at 10 months. She is now 15 months old and can drink from a sippy cup, regular cup (with help) and through a straw. I can say that I had an easy time because I started her on a soft top sippy cup (for one meal) when she was 6 months old.

Hope this helps you!

September - posted on 01/19/2010

I don't think that 15 months is too soon to take away the bottle. Our son gave his bottle up all on his own at 11.5 months. Good luck!

Julie - posted on 01/19/2010

Mandy both my kids didn't have the bottle after they turned 1. My son did great, by his birthday he didn't have the bottle anymore. My daughter had a little trouble getting use to the sippy cups but I would def. get her off the bottle especially at that age, it's not good for the teeth either

Brittany - posted on 01/17/2010

I'm having the same issue. IDK when to take her off the bottle. She drinks everthing out of her sippy cup(juice, water) but not her milk. Should i wean her or just take it away? I didnt wean her off her pacifer i just took it and she was fine.

Amanda - posted on 01/17/2010

The sooner the better!

Amanda - posted on 01/17/2010

The recommended age is 1 year. My daughter is off the bottle and just turned 15 months on Jan 15th. If your child only gets the bottle at bed time try to just put the milk or whatever you give at bed time in the sippy cup instead of the bottle just take it slow! That is what made me realize my daughter was ready, that she only had like 1 or 2 bottles a day. Hope it works out for you!

Andrea - posted on 01/17/2010

Hi, I know how you feel, there is seven years between my baby and his older sister and I struggle to remember how I did things! My son is 14 months and still has a bottle with his bedtime milk. My health visitor told me to have him on a sippy cup by the time he is one but, as with my other children, I feel that its nice for him to have the comfort of a bottle as he's settling down for bedtime (along with a cuddle with his mum!). He has had all other drinks in the daytime from a sippy cup since he was 6 months but I don't plan to take away his bedtime bottle until he is nearer 24 months.

Christine - posted on 01/16/2010

My daughter still has a bottle only for bed time, we are thinking of weaning her off this over the next few weeks. She has gone to bed before without having the bottle and slept fine so we think it is more about us changing our night time bonding routine rather than her needing the bottle. She drinks plenty of water and milk in sippy cups and through a straw cup during the day.

Sara - posted on 01/15/2010

I am in this same quandary.. so far she doesnt like milk in sippys, no clue why, and only gets a bottle at bed time. She loves any other drink but milk in sippys, and wondering when we should tackle this.

Samantha - posted on 01/13/2010

i took my sons bottle away from him at 13 months, he has been off of it for 2 weeks now, it was pretty easy actually, all he usees now is his sippy cup

Erin - posted on 01/13/2010

Well I took my sons away at 1 year. That is what my pediatrician told us was the best time to do it.She said giving him water in it made it more unapealing and putting all the good stuff in sippy cups helps. :)