A series of cancelled or postponed Victorian store cattle sales will resume within days as agents implement a range of social distancing restrictions amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thursday's fortnightly Victorian Livestock Exchange sale at Leongatha will resume after agents agreed to cap the sale at 2000 head.
South Gippsland Stock Agents' Association president Rob Ould said non-essential spectators would be turned away during the sale.
"We will have an hour-long viewing from 8.30am where farmers and restockers can come and view the cattle and give instructions to a commission buyer or agent and then they will have to leave," Mr Ould said.
At the sale, agents will sell a percentage of cattle relative to the total volume of cattle they have sold through the saleyard over the last year.
"We're asking people to stay away from the sale if they don't have any essential business," Mr Ould said.
In West Gippsland, the Pakenham store sale will resume on April 16 with agents opting to use the sale ring to show and sell cattle to adhere to social distancing requirements.
Pakenham Stock Agents' Association president Nathan Gibbon said the sale would attract about 2000 cattle.
He said prospective buyers would be able to view cattle prior to the sale with non-essential visitors asked to leave orders with commission buyers or agents.
At Mortlake, about 2000 cattle will be offered at the Western Victoria Livestock Exchange on April 16.
In central Victoria, Ballarat agents are preparing to draw for 2500 store cattle on April 17 after postponing their 3000-head female last in March due to coronavirus concerns.
In the south-west, Warrnambool agents will resume their monthly store sale on April 24, after the March sale was cancelled.
"We are definitely back on," Warrnambool Stock Agents Association president Anthony Mahony said.
"We are just going to follow the protocols which have been widely publicised."
Mr Mahony said the market would use the "checkerboard system" and only yard cattle in every second pen.
Meanwhile, the Bairnsdale fortnightly store sale will continue on April 24 as this week's sale takes a hiatus due to Good Friday.
Sharp Fullgrabe & Co director Graeme Fullgrabe said the sale would be capped at 1000 head with each agent to sell 250 head respectively.
In northern Victoria, Echuca agents will monitor the extent social distancing is disrupting other sales before making a decision about its May 4 sale.
Sheep market cancelled
At Wycheproof, the special feature sheep sale scheduled for AuctionsPlus was cancelled after the region experienced more than 50 millimetres of rain.
Elders Wycheproof manager Kevin Thompson said the rainfall meant most of the sheep had been withdrawn.
However, he said the break was "fantastic" on top of feed that had already shot.
"It's a much better reason for cancelling a sale," he said.