Hi Tricia, 

Sorry, I replied to this without reading the inital post - I didn't realise you asked specifically for products not made by formula companies. 

In my experience cleft babies 'gum' their bottle nipples ie. milking with their gums - I assume that this is what Nancy Morbacher means by compressing.

The special cleft nipples usually have a slit, an x, or a y, in place of the usual hole, so more milk comes out. The slit (ie. Medela special needs) can be oriented diversely to speed up or slow down the flow. 

Besides the bottles that Nicky Lee and I have linked to, Italian parents also find the regular disposable bottles that are used in the neonatal ward,  useful - I have not yet managed to see one, but they say it is just a soft sided bottle. Initially, the baby might need help getting milk so the bottle (or nipple in the case of the Medela special needs) are squeezeable. 

I am constantly on the look-out for cleft lip and palate breastfeeding information (my daughter was born with UCLP) and link to the resources that I know of on this website http://cleftlipandpalatebreastfeeding.com/

 Alice Farrow
www.cleftlipandpalatebreastfeeding.com
www.languageofinclusion.com
 		 	   		  
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