Goat's Milk Formula with Kaitlyn!

Lovely Kaitlyn is the one who originally termed the coin "oatmeal", and here she is to share the recipe she found for goat's milk formula for babies, with a little bit about her feeding journey with her adorable son Theo! Fun fact: Kaitlyn and I met while both wearing our babies in the produce section at Wegmans. It was friendlove at first sight!

Two pink lines. I was simultaneously thrilled, terrified, and pregnant. As ecstatic as I was to be in the process of creating a human, I was also a new mom to a 5 month old baby boy. One of my first thoughts turned to my milk.

My son and I, admittedly, had a nearly ideal breastfeeding relationship. Sure, he was distractible in public. Sure, he was at the breast every two hours. But it was easy, it was loving, and every moment spent nursing was on the top of our quality time list. Now I had the fear of “drying up” looming over me. Many pregnant women can keep a decent supply up until (and even beyond) the half-way mark at 20 weeks.  I held onto the hope that I would, too. Sadly, at only 8 weeks pregnant I had a starving, cranky son – and deflated boobs. This old cow had dried up.

As I finally came out of denial, and into realization, I knew I had to find an alternative. Big name, commercial formula was out of the picture. Whether it was my own personal pride, or that terrifying list of ingredients, I knew I couldn’t use it. I was even scared away from organic brands, when one of the first ingredients listed was “corn syrup solids”. Though having been a donor myself, I wasn’t sure if donor milk was the route I wanted to take.  Additionally, my son was too young and too dependent on breast milk to switch to a straight milk source. I felt completely at a loss.

Magically, I retrieved a memory from the depths of my brain that whispered “Weston A. Price” – a dentist who is now known for his nutritive recommendations and nutrition foundation. I remembered briefly reading about a homemade infant formula, and began my adventure…

I initially looked into the Weston A. Price recipe. The hows and whys and recipe can be found HERE. I’ll admit: It was completely overwhelming. If my son was 7 days old, I would have strictly followed the directions and ingredients due to the carefully researched formulation. However he was now 7 months old, and with the foundation itself stating a healthy child could switch to raw milk sometime after the 8th month, I was (surprisingly) not overly concerned. I found two additional recipes, HERE and HERE, and planted myself in the kitchen to make my concoction. Here’s what I came up with:

In a saucepan, melt:

1 tbls coconut oil

2 tsp olive oil

1 tsp sunflower oil

Turn off heat and add:

2 cups raw goat’s milk

2 tbls heavy cream (source: cow)

¼ cup whey (source: strained goat keifer)

1 tbls lactose powder

2 tsp nutritional yeast flakes

Mix all and store in a glass container (this especially pertains to the storing of raw milk!). To mix, blend equal parts formula and water. Add a ¼ tsp probiotic to 1-2 bottles per day.

And here’s why: Though goat milk lacks folic acid and is low in Vitamin b12, it boasts more calcium, selenium, and b6 to name a few. With smaller fat molecules and a more similar casein protein to breast milk, you have milk that is easier to digest. Since my son was now eating his vegetables, any vitamin gaps in the formula could potentially be made up through solid foods. I found a farm certified in New York State to sell raw goat’s milk, and felt confident in feeding this. (There’s always the option of pasteurized or even powdered milk!) I still wanted the healthy fats for brain and nervous system development, and made sure to continue adding the oils. After a few days of bottle to bottle experiments (sorry, son!) with the molasses and sugar,  I made an executive Mommy decision that if he drank it without, he could get those sugars from the fruits he loved so much now.  On the plus side, though the initial bulk cost of ingredients seemed high, this formula saved a ton versus commercial brands.

My son’s first taste was mixed half and half with pumped milk. He never batted an eye and happily devoured his bottle. Slowly the amount of breast milk decreased as I continued to add more of his new goat formula. With the exception of a noticeable difference in the consistency and smell (phew!) of dirty diapers, this formula seemed to agree with him gastro-intestinally. Having not gained a single pound from 6-7 months due to my low supply, my son quickly made up for lost time and gained 3 pounds within the first month. His mood began to change, his bottles spaced out, and to my surprise, his sleeping habits improved!

Keep in mind, I do not have a degree in Nutrition, nor am I a pediatrician – I am simply a mom with an internal drive to keep my son robust and healthy. As a parent, it was ultimately my decision to make and feed this formula and I assumed responsibility for these choices. If you are ever forced to face this decision yourself for your own reasons, trust your gut and the gut health of your baby. As with any new food, introduce slowly and watch for signs of possible allergies and reactions. Do your research and don’t settle until you, and especially babe - are truly happy!

Theodore, one month into drinking his goat’s milk formula. He took to it right away and soon squealed with delight (or impatience!) when he saw a bottle.