Discover Cattle for Sale Victoria | Find Upcoming Cattle Sales Near You

Selecting the right cattle for your farm isn’t a one-off decision — it can impact your farm’s future livelihood. Given Victoria's diverse landscape, choosing the correct breed of cattle to thrive in your unique environment is critical for maximising profit.

Cattle auctions offer buyers the opportunity to inspect and carefully curate their cattle line-up. In addition to the access they grant to a diverse range of livestock, cattle sales also provide valuable networking opportunities with other Victorian farmers and enable buyers to acquire cattle at competitive prices.

What Is A Cattle Sale?

First and foremost, cattle sales refer to events where livestock is bought and sold. Livestock can range from cows and calves to heifers, steers and bulls.

In Victoria, cattle sales often take the form of an auction, private sale or direct transaction. The most common types of cattle sales include:

1. Online Auctions

For time-constrained buyers or those wanting to avoid travelling to multiple locations for livestock viewing, online auctions like AuctionPlus are a convenient alternative. These digital platforms allow sellers to easily list livestock and buyers to make their bids from the comfort of their own homes.

One of the major benefits of online cattle auctions is that the livestock can remain at its original location. This helps to keep the livestock at optimal animal health and welfare standards and removes the need for transportation to a central auction site.

Because of this, online auctions offer a streamlined, efficient method for livestock transactions while prioritising animal well-being.

2. Saleyard Auctions

Unlike online auctions, saleyard auctions require the transportation of livestock to centralised sale facilities where the livestock is then sold to the highest bidder.

In this style of cattle auction, the cattle prices are determined by market forces of supply and demand - with the sales prices established in real time during the bidding process.

For those wanting to inspect cows for sale in Victoria in person, these types of auctions are ideal and allow buyers looking for specific breeds or cattle with particular attributes to view the animals prior to bidding.

3. Paddock Sales

Lastly, paddock sales involve cattle being sold directly from the vendor’s property. In contrast to a saleyard auction, cattle prices are negotiated on a per-head or per-kilogram basis. For this reason, paddock sales are best for buyers with a set budget or firm idea of what they are willing to pay for the cattle based on market prices.

What Types of Cattle Are For Sale in Victoria?

For those seeking out cows for sale in Victoria, or perhaps steers for sale across Victoria, online cattle auctions can help you find the exact breeds you are looking for.

In general, you can expect to find a diverse range of breeds suitable for various farming purposes at a Victorian cattle sale, including:

• 1. Angus: Known for its beef production and marbled meat quality, Angus cattle are incredibly adaptable to various environments and popular because of this.
• 2. Hereford and Poll Hereford: Suitable for the cooler climate in Victoria, Hereford and Poll Herefords are sought for their hardiness and docile temperament.
• 3. Murray Grey: An Australian breed known for high-quality beef production and adaptability to local conditions.
• 4. Shorthorn: The Shorthorn is another popular breed throughout Australia due to its temperament and adaptability.
• 5. European breeds: Including Charolais, Limousin, and Simmental, which are often used for crossbreeding to produce faster-growing, higher-yielding calves.
• 6. Dairy breeds: While less common in general cattle sales, Holstein Friesian and Jersey cows are major players in the Victorian dairy industry.

How Do Cattle Sales Work?

Whether it is through an online auction, saleyard auction or paddock sale, cattle sales in Victoria often follow the below steps:

• 1. Inspection: Buyers will examine the cattle before bidding begins.
• 2. Bidding: An auctioneer starts the bidding process, and any interested buyers signal their bids. Hereford and Poll Hereford: Suitable for the cooler climate in Victoria, Hereford and Poll Herefords are sought for their hardiness and docile temperament.
• 3. Sale: The highest bidder wins the lot (unless it is a reserved auction and the minimum price isn’t met)
• 4. Payment and Exchange: The buyer pays for the cattle and arranges transportation.

What To Look For In A Cattle Sale: Tips For Evaluation

While purchasing cattle for sale in Victoria is a relatively low-risk activity, there are a few tips we would recommend to ensure that buyers remain protected:

1. Seek Documentation

Request documentation that verifies that the seller is legitimate. This will protect you from any scams or illegitimate schemes.

Other documents to request also include:

• 1. National Vendor Declaration (NVD): For each lot of cattle, ensure that the seller provides a correctly completed NVD. This document is crucial for traceability and food safety.
• 2. Property Identification Code (PIC): Check that the seller also has a valid PIC, as this is required for all livestock movements.
• 3. National Livestock Identification System (NLIS) Tags: Finally, verify that all cattle have the correct NLIS devices in place. This will help cover your bases.
• 4. Accreditations: Grassfed, organic, antibiotic free are examples of accreditations that some buyer look for

Ensuring that the seller has some or all of the above documentation will give you peace of mind and protection. However, bidding through reputable platforms like AuctionPlus immediately gives you this reassurance as we follow a strict verification process to screen all sellers.

2. Check The Healthiness of Livestock

Even if you are viewing the cattle online, be sure to check the healthiness of the livestock but considering the below:

• What’s it’s physical condition like? Consider the cattle’s muscling and fat distribution as this can drive up its value - particularly for any meat farmers.
• Weight and age: Note the cattle’s weight for its age as this can give you an indication of growth potential.

3. Request Treatment History

Request information on the cattle's origin, its ownership history, and any chemical treatments it may have had as this could affect its current performance. These are all documents that should be able to be produced on request, and will help give buyers assurance that the livestock is legitimate.

Browse Upcoming Cattle Sales in Victoria with AuctionsPlus

The beauty of finding upcoming cattle sales in Victoria with digital platforms like AuctionPlus is tenfold. Not only do you have immediate peace of mind that sellers are verified and legitimate, but you can enjoy the convenience of enacting the viewing and bidding process from your own premises!

Offering real-time data and insights, we have built a culture of trust within our community and a reputation as Australia’s single biggest marketplace. We have the reach and authority to help you find the right cattle for you.

Discover upcoming cattle for sale in Victoria with us today!