One very important part of horse care is daily grooming; as this keeps a horse's skin and coat healthy, prevents chaffing and keeps them looking handsome and comfortable. Horses generally need to be groomed daily and especially before and after a run or workout.
There are a quite a few instruments used when grooming a horse that have been developed mainly with the comfort of the horse in mind.
Sweat Scraper: This is used to remove water or sweat from the horse and is normally made of curved metal or plastic about 18 inches long attached to a handle which can have dual layers of metal and plastic.
Shedding Blade: It is a metal toothed blade used to remove loose clumps of hair or caked mud and must be used with care as the teeth can irritate the horse.
Bot Brick: A small block of thick Styrofoam or stone ribbed on a horse to pickup botfly eggs that are sometimes laid on its legs. A variation of this is the bot knife that does the same job by shaving the eggs off.
Clippers: All clippers are now mostly electric and are used to trim winter coats, ears and jaw line.
Dandy Brush: Used to remove dirt and hair off the main parts of the body and is commonly made of plastic bristles.
Soft Brush: This is a more fine bristled brush that is used to remove smaller particles and give shine to the horse's coat. The brush is typically made of synthetic fibres or animal hair.
Mane Comb: A wide toothed comb can be metal or plastic used in brushing the tail or mane.
Hoof Pick: A hooked metal tool used to clear the hooves of mud or caked dirt; it should be done before and after riding.
Curry Comb: Often the primary grooming tool consists of a handheld rubber piece with teeth on one side and is used to stimulate the horse's natural body oils and generally cleans its skin and coat.