This study aimed to evaluate the effects of intensive whole-milk feeding in calves on subsequent performance and feed efficiency in growing heifers. Up to 56 d of age, Holstein-Gyr calves received 6 L/d of 4 different liquid diets consisting of whole milk with the increasing addition of milk replacer (Sprayfo Violet SSP) to adjust the concentration of total solids (TS) to 13.5 (n = 15), 16.1 (n = 15), 18.2 (n = 13), 20.4% (n = 15). After weaning, animals were housed in 4 paddocks, each one equipped with 3 electronic feed bins and one electronic water bin (Intergado, Brazil) in the experimental farm of Embrapa Dairy Cattle, Brazil. The same diet (70% corn silage and 30% concentrate, dry matter basis; 195 g of CP/kg of DM) was fed in ad libitum, twice a day, until 210 d of age. Daily feed intake (DFI) and water intake (WI) were registered by the electronic system. Average daily gain (ADG) was determined from regression of weekly BW measurements so feed conversion (FC) could be calculated. Longitudinal data was analyzed as a completely randomized design with repeated measures using linear mixed models, where animal’s age and TS were fixed effects while animal was considered a random effect. The necessity to add random components to model error dependence and heteroscedasticity was evaluated based on Akaike’s Information Criterion. Initial body weight, air temperature and humidity were added as co-variables. Average and cumulative results were analyzed by linear regression, where only the fixed effect of TS was evaluated (α = 0.05). DFI and WI were only influenced by age, however in both cases an interaction effect was observed, although none supplementation level caused a steady superiority across period for any variable. This result was corroborated by cumulative DFI and WI that were not influenced by TS. ADG was decreased by increasing nutritional management (e.g., 916 ± 30 and 833 ± 29 g/d for animals with 13.5 and 20.4%, respectively), what also reflected in a higher FC to animals in higher TS (13.19 ± 0.45 vs 14.55 ± 0.44 in animals that received 13.5 and 20.4% of FD, respectively).