Help-2 1/2 month old REFUSES to take bottle

My son refuses to take a bottle of expressed breast milk from my husband,grandmother, aunt and myself. He has been exclusively bf and he puts up a fight like you cannot believe. The most he'll take is an ounce. After that he'll fuss, fight, hold his breath and turn beet red until he basically cries himself to sleep. When he wakes it's the same thing all over again. These sessions last anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour, of course, taking breaks in between for my son to settle down. We've been trying to introduce the bottle since he was a month old and our BFing was well established. I am going back to work in 3 weeks and am worried that he will not be getting enough to eat. I've done everything everyone has recommended.
I've gone to a different part of the house or left the house completely, gave a shirt with my smell on it, tried different bottles/nipples, tried feeding him before he gets hungry, tried feeding him when he's practically starving and he still refuses. Finally I give in and feed him after 6-8 hours of not taking the bottle and only eating an ounce. I am worried that the dr. will tell me at his next visit that he's failing to thrive. I am so worried that he's not getting enough to eat when he goes on his bottle strikes. How long is too long before I should give in and BF him? Please help...any advice or info will greatly be appreciated.;(

My daughter in law had the same issue.
First of all she did not try at all and sometimes just seeing her put him in a frenzy.
The only way I could get him to take it was when iI walked around the mall holding him and giving him the bottle at the same time.
The next time was at home and I had a sound that was interesting right next to that distracted him [something that goes by itself ie a vacuum or a loud fan or a bubbling water} and then I still had to rock back and forth to get him started.
Patience patience and more patience but keep trying.
He will take it.
BTW we used a nuk nipple same as the pacifier.

Thank you for your suggestion/advice. I'll relay it on to my family. I'll also try the nuk nipple. In fact, I just bought one today. But you hit it right on the nose...Patience. I just find it so ironic that in my situation, with my sister's kids we were trying so hard to get them off the bottle and with my little one, we're trying twice as hard to get him on it. Much appreciation for you help.

I just wanted to follow up regarding my situation...my DS at 3 months old is FINALLY taking a bottle. Dori, you were right, the NUK nipple did the trick. We also took a week break from trying to give him the bottle (which I believe helped my son and myself emotinally). When we re-introduced it to him, we tried all the different bottles again, giving it to him before he was hungry,in a different nursing position, humming and talking to him and finally, with lots of praises,he drank. What i did also was test the nipples myself. It was then I discovered why he didn't like certain nipples. The latex nipples were too rubbery-tasting and smelling. He'd make a face when I put it in his mouth. The Avent & Dr. Brown-round were too long & stiffer than the NUK. The playtex Vent-aire & Dr. Brown-skinny bottles' nipples were too narrow & the Munchkin tri-flow's nipple was too short. But the Gerber NUK orthodontic was the right one. I had a feeling when i tried it. I noticed when he fed, that my nipple would look flattened out like the Gerber NUK. And voila, he took 4 oz the first time in no time. I know the nipple did make a difference but I'm also sure that taking a break helped.

For others out there in the same situation, the philosophy that they'll eat when they're hungry is not right. I didn't want to subject my DS to that. He was already being traumatized with the bottle, I didn't want to compound it with starving him. Follow your heart & instinct. Listen & watch your baby's cues,and have a lot of patience. He/she will take to the bottle when they're ready.When that day comes it will feel like you won the lottery. Thanks for your help!!!

So glad it worked.I know just how you feel!!
I totally agree with you about trying new things when they are hungry
When it is time to introduce solids I found that trying to do it before they got their liquids either breast or bottle was very annoying too.So contrary to what is often suggested ,when the time comes try introducing solids about an hour after their milk.
They are not so hungry and in a better mood to try something new.
Good luck with your new bottle success!!