When harvested or offered at an appropriate growth stage, Cocksfoot can be a great roughage source for horses and may be considered a suitable alternative to other grass hays such as Rhodes grass hay where it may not be as easily accessible. Its ability to maintain ground coverage and feed availability year-round makes it an advantageous species to have sown throughout a horse pasture where other species may begin to decline in growth and nutritive value during seasonal and climatic changes.
When tested appropriately for nutritive values such as sugar, starch, crude fibre, crude protein and digestible energy, Cocksfoot may be a suitable forage or fodder source for laminitic equines, or those who require their intakes to be closely monitored due to other health conditions such as metabolic disorders, recurring gastrointestinal upsets, or ulcers.