The effect of ozone gas application on growth and health parameters of Holstein calves

It was aimed to examine the effect of ozone gas, which has antibacterial and antioxidant properties, on the healthy rearing of calves during the suckling period. Ten Holstein calves (n=5 each group) were used in the study conducted to determine the effects of rectal application of ozone gas on Holstein calves on the growth, immune system and intestinal flora of calves. Groups; Calf starter feed + whole milk (KNT) and Calf starter feed + whole milk + Rectal ozone application (DNM) was formed. Ozone gas was applied to the calves once a week as 50 µg gas/200 ml dose. When the calves consumed an average of 800 g/day starter on consecutive days, they were weaned and the ozone application was terminated. The experiment was terminated by taking live weight and body measurements at the 60 d-age. The data were analyzed with the repeated measures analysis of variance technique. The effect of ozone gas application on the live weight of the calves was not significant. The effect on the measure of the body depth at the 2nd and 5th weeks and the measure of the chest girth at the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th weeks were significant (P<0.05). The effects of ozone gas application on the general health parameters of the calves were not significant. The effect on fecal bacterial counts was not significant. While the effect of the ozone on the biochemistry blood analyzes of the calves was not significant, the difference between the groups in the hemogram blood values of hemoglobin (HGB), red blood cell (RBC) and Mean Corpuscular Volume (MCV) was significant (P<0.05). The differences between total antioxidant status (TAS) and Glutathione peroxidase (GPx) values of the calves were significant (P<0.05). The differences between the immunoglobulin values of the calves were not significant. The results indicated that the ozone gas application had positive effects on TAS, GPx, HGB, RBC and MCV values, and support the antioxidant defense mechanism without any negative effect on the growth of calves.