> "21 days, still one pound below bw" is definitely not normal. At 0.5 ounce gain a day it will take him another THIRTY-TWO days to reach birth weight  That means at the present rate he will be 53 days old before he reaches birth weight.  I don't know if this mother can produce enough milk, but I strongly suspect  this baby doesn't have the energy to stimulate a milk supply.   Donor milk is great if it available but there are times when formula is a life saver and I strongly suspect this is one of those times. 


Eileen Shea, BSc, IBCLC

>   
On 2011-07-20, at 8:12 PM, Liane Varnes wrote:

> Baby has continued to gain, according to mother's baby scale, .5 oz./day. Obtained quantity of donor milk night before last. Is supplementing after nursing with either mom's expressed milk or donor milk. In less than 24 hours m had nursed as usual, and fed 9 oz. of either her or donor milk. Still not another bm. 
> 
> Went to pediatric gi specialist today. He declared baby fit and said he's just eating lots of small meals and not triggering a bm. Parents say he told them some babies go three weeks between bm's. (I have never heard of one this young doing so.) He suggested staying the course with supplements to try to fill him enough to trigger a bowel emptying, but is satisfied with .5 oz/day gain. He says baby is in good shape and not failing to thrive. He wants to see them in two weeks. 
> 
> I am not accustomed to hearing things like that from Dr's I've worked with. I was pleasantly surprised as I was beginning to really question myself with this one -- still am, for the most part. 
> 
> So, home birth, 21 days, still one pound below bw, only two bm's -- one on day 1 and one on day 15. 
> Thanks for everyone's input. I really appreciate it!
> 
>  
> 
> Liane C. Varnes, IBCLC
> 
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