A small yarding of cattle was offered at Bairnsdale's fortnightly store sale on Friday as producers in eastern Victoria opted to hold onto their stock.
Agents sold 120 cattle with only a small buying gallery present, made up mostly of local farmers.
Sharp Fullgrabe director Graeme Fullgrabe said breeders were holding onto their cattle for feature sales in the coming weeks.
"Our main lines of dry cattle won't be sold until late August and early September when we plan to hold our two feature sales," Mr Fullgrabe said.
"We have about a thousand cattle put away for that but it was a good sale [on Friday] considering the yarding and current pandemic restrictions."
A feature of the sale was nine Hereford heifers with Shorthorn calves at foot, offered by Penderscourt, Benambra, which made $2700.
Mr Fullgrabe said eastern Victoria was on track to receive one of its best spring breaks in more than five years.
"People are scared about what could happen if we get a lot of rain in the coming days because the ground is wet enough," he said.
"If we get anything more than an inch of rain we'll be waterlogged like South Gippsland
"So many farmers have to replenish their hay stocks and people will be able to cut excess hay this year because of the wet winter which is a relief after the fires."
Steers
IJ Crooke, Longford, sold 16 Black Baldys, 418kg, for $1720 or 411 cents a kilogram, and 16 Angus and Black Baldys, 391kg, for $1650 or 421c/kg.
Robert Hoffman, Meerleiu, sold four Red Angus calves for $1080.
David Jackson, Bruthen, sold two Angus-cross steers for $1180.
R Redman, Marlo, sold 11 Angus and Black Baldys for $1140.
Heifers
Penderscourt, Benambra, sold a second pen of four Hereford heifers with Angus calves at foot made $2340.
Riviera Farms, Hillside, sold 10 preg-test in-calf Hereford heifers to calve in November for $2100.
The next pen of nine made $2000 and then 11 PTIC Angus heifers made $2200.
Riveria Farms also sold 12 Red Angus PTIC heifers for made $2025 and 11 Black Baldys for $2010.
Mr Fullgrabe said all the heifers were purchased by local breeders from Heyfield to Bairnsdale.