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This study was carried out to put colostrum, which did not have a commercial value to use and to examine the effects of feeding calves with colostrum instead of milk. In the study, 40 Holstein-Friesian male calves raised in a private farm were used. Two groups were formed. The first group (experiment group) was fed on colostrum which was 1/3 diluted with water and the second group (control group) was fed on milk.
In the experiment and control groups birth weights were 40.9 kg and 41.9 kg, weaning weights (35th day) were 53.8 kg and 53.6 kg, total feed consumptions were 12.3 kg and 12.6 kg and daily live weight gains were 368.7 g and 332.2 g, respectively. None of the calves in both of the groups died during the study. For the characters inspected in the study, the differences between the control and experiment groups were not statistically significant.
The results of the study show that an economical income could be provided for the farms by the use of colostrum, which was I /3 diluted with water for the feeding of calves until weaning.