Breast is best they say, but we have dealt with that in our breastfeeding article. Sure there are some advantages with breastfeeding, but there are also some advantages in bottle feeding, particularly from a dad’s perspective.

It maybe that your partner has chosen not to breastfeed, or it could be that, for whatever reason, your partner is unable to breastfeed. She should not feel pressurised into breastfeeding, or too down if she is unable to. We invite you to read our comments in our breastfeeding article on this issue in particular. If you and your partner are going to bottle feed here are some tips, advantages and disadvantages that you should know:

1.You may have guessed when we say you and your partner are going to bottle feed your baby this is one massive advantage for the guys over breastfeeding, as you can feed your baby yourself!
Some guys feel very excluded when their partner is breastfeeding their baby, you are not involved and can even feel jealous, which we know sounds weird and selfish but it’s true. The upside if bottle feeding is you can take some of the load off of your partner. She can rest for a change while you are feeding and, at the risk of sounding too girly here, bonding with your baby. Even those guys whose partners have breastfed their babies say how enjoyable and included they feel when they are able to play an active role in feeding their baby.

2. This point really ties in to the first point but it also means that anyone can feed the baby for you. Perish the thought is often the reaction of first time dads but believe us after some sleepless nights, and a few heated discussions with your partner, it is sometimes good for grandparents or some other person you trust to be able to feed your baby while you and your partner get some rest.

3. Your partner may not like breastfeeding in public, she maybe embarrassed or she simply finds it slightly awkward. If for example your partner is big chested she may find it difficult to cover up as much as she wants or just feel that she is revealing too much. Naturally, with a bottle, this is never a problem.

4. One of the biggest worries when a baby is being breastfed that new parents face is “is my baby getting enough food?” We wish that we could invent transparent breasts with calibrations because we have lost count of the number of times mums and dads have said to us they are worried that their baby is losing weight because they are not feeding enough. With bottles you know exactly what your baby is taking on. You simply measure out the amount of formula required and off you go.

5. As a general rule bottle fed babies tend to sleep longer between feeds because it takes a bit longer to digest formula milk.

You can see that there are numerous advantages to a baby  being bottle fed. One of the biggest downsides can be the organization required. You will also need to spend some money.

Here’s what we think you need:

1. Baby bottles. These come in various shapes from a whole host of manufacturers. You might think that you are saving a few quid by getting the cheaper bottle over the ones that is slightly more expensive but if you think that you will be using and washing these bottles countless times a day for at least 6 months and often a lot
longer you don’t want the measurement/calibration lines to simply fade away so that you can’t see them. We say 6 months because that seems to be the general rule. On the continent it is 4 months and, as we keep saying, there is not one hard and fast correct rule. Your baby may simply want more food and move onto solids earlier.

2. Teats. These will normally come with the bottles when you initially buy them. Nobody told us when we were about to become dads that there were so many types of teats. They vary in flow rate and shapes and colours. Several different flow rates are usually available for the particular teat you have chosen. i.e. you can't simply use a teat, you need to select the correct flow rate for the stage that your baby is at. We didn’t know this and can remember when our partners could feed the baby with little difficulty but we struggled. They were, at that time, on number 2 but we were using no 1. This meant that less milk was coming out;  the baby therefore had to work harder to try and get the same amount of milk out and was getting mighty agitated as a result.

3. Formula. This can be ready made, rather like long life, or in powder form. There are, not surprisingly, numerous brands. Buying this in itself over time can add up. The ready made ones tend to be more expensive but they are of course very convenient, especially if you are feeding your baby at 2am or are out and about for the day. You will get organised pretty quickly because believe us trying to measure out powdered formula in a dimly lit room in the middle of the night doesn’t make for a particularly tranquil experience or a good day at work the next day. Formula is modified cow’s milk so that it is as close as possible to breat milk. It is essential that you follow the instructions on how to prepare and store it. If you have any doubt about how long you have had it open in the fridge, don’t take any risks, bin it, and get some more. Your baby may not get on with a particular brand, you will know this because they will throw up what they don’t like, you will get used to the baby being sick on you!!!!! This is unquestionably one the “joys” of being a dad.

4. Sterilliser. This is something that people who rave about bottle feeding tend to gloss over a little. Picture it, you get home from work and are totally knackered, your partner is also knackered, you are both about to hit the hay when your partner reminds you that “the bottles need to be done”. What this actually entails is, that you wash them (normal clean soapy water is fine), rinse them and then put them in a sterilliser. Sounds straight forward but that little exercise can take a little while to complete. You need to sterilise new bottles before you use them and then after every feed. Now, as we mentioned above, this can be 6 bottles a day. If the bottles are not sterilised properly your baby can get diarrhoea or tummy upsets. There are three different types of sterilisers, the fastest and arguably quickest, are ones you can use in the microwave. You are also able to get sterilisers that use an element similar to a kettle to steam the bottles, and the traditional ones where you soak bottles in sterile solutions which take a while. You will want to have remembered to have done the bottles before your baby wakes you up, it’s “your turn”, and you are standing in your kitchen at 2am trying to do this all with one hand while holding baby and then waiting for the steriliser to finish or trying to cool the water, which should also be sterile, but has only just boiled. Like us, we suspect that you will develop a routine pretty quickly.

Like so many things this bottle feeding is trial and error. It may take time. You will find some parents that say “our little one is an angel and feeds really well, sleeps through and is basically perfect in every way". In our view, total rubbish, or we should say we have never come across one. Every one wants to do well as a parent and there are so many myths and old wives tales and most people are frankly not telling you the real deal. We say by trial and error you will succeed and, as a general rule when it comes to feeding, if your baby seems to be getting enough food, they are generally content after feeding, and you and your partner are regularly changing nappies (both wet and dry), then the chances are all is well on track. Remember that this is a massive learning curve. You will cope and believe us if your baby isn’t happy it will let you know!