DS drinking less... is this normal behavior?

[wangstar]

DS will be 5 months in a few days and it seems like he's not drinking as much formula.
Around 3.5 months, he was averaging 28 oz a day and he continued that amount till about 2 weeks ago.

I was gonna start increasing his formula intake from 6oz to 8oz per feeding because I was afraid that he wasn't getting enough. However, he started to push the bottle away after only having 3-4 oz, as if he's had enough. I'd try to feed from different positions and angles or wait a few minutes to see if he'd take more; sometimes he'd finish the bottle but sometime we'd stop because he just won't have it (and I don't want him to develop eating disorder or something).

So, is this a normal behavior?
Another thing, I think he might be teething, could that have something to do with it?

[lizzywednesday]

Teething babies can opt out of feeds because of pain from the suction, definitely. You could try massaging his gums or using a teething gel - we used Orajel Naturals brand with my daughter because I had a paranoia about -caine anesthetics ... and Hyland's has belladonna in it, which I found troubling for my heart-defect baby.

A breastfed baby could also pull a nursing strike at around this age - they're starting to get more interested in the world at 4 and 5 months old, you know!

If the teething gel, or a frozen sock (really - soak a clean sock in water, wring it out a bit, then toss it in the freezer 'til it's frozen, give to baby and VOILA! teething toy for practically free; you can also use a knotted washcloth), don't help, try burping him more often during a feed. He might be swallowing more air.

How often are you offering feeds? You may be able to extend the time between if you offer bigger bottles.

[BabbyO]

I agree with PP. I will also mention that neither of my boys (both BF, but bottle-fed when I was at work) took more than 6 oz in a single bottle feeding. I suspect their AM nursing session may have been a bit more than 6 oz at times, but I'm pretty sure that other session were around 6 oz.

Anyway, they hit 3-4 mo started taking 6 oz/feeding session, then never increased from that. So I wouldn't be overly concerned.