if for some reason you couldn't BF, what would you feed your baby?

[caedmyn]

(I'm putting this here became I want a TF view.) This is a just-out-of-curiosity question but it's also something I think about occasionally, as I'd like to have a "game plan" just in case I was ever in this situation.

So, if, for some reason (severe illness, adopted child [I do know it's possible to induce lactation], lost supply during pregnancy, etc) you were unable to BF or to exclusively BF, would you try to get donated BM? Feed homemade formula? Feed a commercial organic formula? Some combination of these?

I think I would try to get donated BM but also supplement with some of the ingredients of the homemade formulas like CLO as I don't know how comfortable I would feel that BM from someone who is likely eating the SAD would supply all of my baby's nutritional needs. So I'd want to get all the benefits of BM while providing optimal nutrition and avoiding all the things in even homemade formula that young babies really aren't made to digest, like non-human milk.

[CherryBomb]

I would try to get donated breastmilk first. Honestly I couldn't afford formula so I'd have to go on WIC and get whatever they gave me If price wasn't a factor I'd either buy breastmilk or use organic formula. Hopefully I'll never have to face that.

[Panserbjorne]

I was in this situation. I got donated breastmilk and then made my own formula from raw goat's milk, fresh carrot juice, CLO, flax oil, nutritional yeast, spirulina etc. for the balance of what I needed.

[momma4fun]

From the age of 6 months to 1 year my dd drank 1:1 fresh raw cow's milk and filtered water with about a teaspoon of blackstrap molasses added to each (glass) bottle.

I occasionally give my current baby. 6 months old, dd a botle of that with some bifidobacterium infantis added, and extra raw cream if I have it.

If I had a newborn infant in need of a milk I would be a little more picky and follow the NT formula recipe for the first couple months. Overall though, I find the NT formula to be a bit over the top.

I would honestly be wary of donated breastmilk unless I knew it was coming from a momma following a TF diet. Many of my breastfeeding vegetarian friends have children whose teeth are rotted and suffer from other ailments or are hyperactive.

[naturemama1]

Donated, definitely. Milkshare.com is a terrific resource. I have a friend who used milkshare milk and it was such a blessing for them. I fully intend to donate to milkshare after this babe is born. I built up two big freezer stashes that went untouched with my first two babies, so I might as well put it to better use this time!

[Nan'sMom]

We did Baby's Only organic formula when I had trouble starting to bf dd1, and we were able to ebf in about 2 weeks I think (I was so upset about the formula that the exact details are fuzzy). I'm not sure what I'd do now...I think donor milk can be great but I know it made me uncomfortable when I was offered it for dd1. Who knows...I might try raw milk, but not sure. For dd2 there was no issue--she latched on right away and even if she hadn't, since I was tandem nursing I had enough milk to feed eight babies, or so it seemed!

[momto l&a]

I would use goats milk. Unless I could find a donkey that would let me milk her.

[Dillpicklechip]

Just out of curiosity, why would you prefer donkey's milk? I wasn't even aware that people drank donkey's milk.

[momto l&a]

Originally Posted by Dillpicklechip

Just out of curiosity, why would you prefer donkey's milk? I wasn't even aware that people drank donkey's milk.

Donkey milk is the closest to humans from what I understand.

[abclan]

I used fresh goat milk from a gal who delivered it once a week.
Still do, actually but I mostly use it for yogurt.

This is was before I had read anything on TF. Now, I would probably add some CLO.

[Rachel J.]

I donated the milk that I pumped while ds2 was in the NICU. On the one hand I can understand hesitancy with a bodily fluid from an unknown source. But on the other hand why are people often more comfortable with a bodily fluid from an animal or worse, dehydrated and supplemented with artficial vitamins and minerals (formula)? Personally I'd do everythig I could to get breastmilk and honestly I'd probably use formula if I couldn't, at least for the first few months. My boys have both shown dairy sensitivities and ds2 showed an egg sensitivity (testing that out again right now) so I wouldn't be comfortable with the homemade formula at first.

[mootopian]

I think I would explore donated breastmilk, but might stop short of accepting it from someone I didn't know personally and consider exceptionally healthy. For a very young baby (under about 4 months), I'd try that. But I would absolutely not pasteurize milk for my baby, as I fear THAT would lead to tolerance or allergy problems. I would follow the NT recipe using extremely clean, extremely fresh (no more than 3 days old to start) raw milk from a farmer who did regular bacterial testing and knew my plans to feed my baby. I'd watch for signs of bad reactions to that formula. If that didn't work, I'd try the meat formula, because I believe that whole, living foods are the best we can give to babies.
The horse/donkey milk idea is interesting - I think their lactose levels are closer to ours and their fat globules more digestible. But I think I've seen horse milk selling for about $20 a gallon! Hopefully the NT recipe would correct the lactose and assist with fat digestion (via gelatin and bifidus???) enough that the baby would be do okay.
Thanks for mentioning the milkshare site - I'm due in September and come from a long line of well-supplied mamas, BUT as a dairy farmer, I admit that I'm pretty tired of milking machines and obsessive sanitation without bringing them into my bedroom!