Millets, traditionally considered as “coarse cereals,” are increasingly gaining recognition for their nutritional richness, environmental resilience, and utility in animal nutrition. India, the largest producer of millets globally, cultivates diverse millet varieties such as pearl millet, sorghum, finger millet, foxtail millet, barnyard millet, and kodo millet. These crops are highly adaptable to arid and semi-arid conditions, require minimal agricultural inputs, and possess a superior nutrient profile compared to conventional cereals like rice and wheat. In animal nutrition, millets offer a promising alternative due to their high content of energy, essential amino acids, vitamins, and bioactive compounds. Pearl millet and sorghum are already used as partial replacements for maize in poultry, dairy, and small ruminant diets, with favorable effects on performance, nutrient digestibility, and product quality. Millet straws, although coarse and fibrous, serve as a significant roughage source, especially during fodder-scarce periods. Their nutritive value can be enhanced through physical processing, chemical (urea) treatment, or biological methods, including fungal fermentation and exogenous enzyme supplementation. Incorporating millets and their byproducts into complete feed systems and total mixed rations not only optimizes nutrient intake but also supports economic and sustainable livestock farming. Additionally, millets hold potential in pet nutrition and functional foods due to their hypoallergenic properties and health-promoting bioactive peptides. However, wider adoption in animal feed systems requires targeted interventions such as varietal improvement, feed processing technologies, enzyme supplementation strategies, and policy support to establish robust millet-based feed value chains. Strengthening millet–livestock integration, especially in rainfed regions, can bridge the fodder deficit and contribute significantly to food, feed, nutritional, and socio-economic security. An effort is done to explore the current applications, nutritive attributes, processing technologies, and future research directions essential to harness the full potential of major/minor millets in animal nutrition.