The Poitevin may be ridden, or driven in harness, both in competition and for pleasure; it is suitable for equine therapy. It has occasionally been used for light agricultural work in vineyards, in movies, as a mount for forest monitors (in Melun), harnessed for urban work (in Poitier and Niort), and for the collection of waste (on the Île de Ré). It may be used for vegetation management: in 1994 the departmental council of Ille-et-Vilaine bought a herd for maintenance of marshlands in the area.