| We did not have a Pritchard nipple at home and we had no way of acquiring
one quickly so we had to come up with an alternative solution. We decided to try
a human baby bottle. After a few minutes of trying it became obvious that the hole
in the nipple needed to be enlarged significantly. I removed the nipple and made 2
cuts about 1/8 inch long in the form of an X. This seemed to improve the flow of milk.
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It soon became evident that insufficient air was being returned to the bottle to
keep the nipple from collapsing. This problem was resolved by drilling a 1/16 inch
diameter hole near the top of the bottle to allow enough air in the replace the milk which was
being sucked out by the cria. This method works well, but you need to remember to keep the
hole on the top side of the bottle while feeding to reduce spillage. This is sometimes difficult to
do when it is pitch black and 10 below zero. We used this arrangement for a couple of weeks until
our Pritchard nipples arrived. |
| The Pritchard nipple proved to be a major improvement. These nipples have a flutter valve
which allows air to return to the bottle through a small hole in the cap when there is negative
pressure inside the bottle. When the pressure in the bottle returns normal the valve closes and
keeps milk from spilling through the hole. |
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The Pritchard nipples are delivered without an opening and therefore need to be cut
before they can be used. Your first inclination will be to cut the little tit off the end
which produces a circular opening. This works but causes excessive leakage. We found that
splitting the tit lengthwise with a razor knife worked quite well. |
| The best thing about the Pritchard nipples is that they will screw on to any standard
soda bottle. this way you can keep increasing the size of the container as the cria grows. |
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