10 Best Horse Brushes – Reviews & Top Picks
- May 27, 2023
- By Dr. Barry Buttler
Brushing is an essential element of horse care. As a bonus, it may help prevent saddle sores by removing perspiration and other detritus that often accumulate during long-distance rides.
Many brands are available, and choosing the best one for your horse might be difficult. For this assessment, we've selected seven of the best horse brushes.
Let us tell you about our experiences with each one, so you can make an informed decision. To help you narrow down your search, we created a quick buyer's guide that goes through the pros and cons of each brush type.
BestForPets (bestforpets.org) will talk about everything from size and bristles to usage and durability so you can make an educated decision.
Buyer's Guide
Let’s take a look at a few of the most critical factors to take into account while selecting a brush for your horse.
Currycombs
In order to choose the right horse brush, you must consider the task you will be doing with it. We’ll start with the currycomb brush style. The use of curry combs to groom our pets, including dogs, cats, and horses, is on the rise. The bristles on these devices are hard enough to take up and retain animal fur. It is possible to twist the handle or press a button to retract the bristles, enabling the hair to be deposited in the trash bin.
Many people use currycombs to remove stray hair from their horses’ bodies and to massage them, but they may also scratch and injure them if the bristles are too stiff. Inexpensive models’ hair release mechanisms may be fragile and readily breakable.
To break up dirt and remove shedding hair without harming or aggravating the horse, look for a currycomb with stiff but not rough bristles. The longer the bristles, the softer they will be, although they may not be as effective at massaging.
Dandy Brushes
In addition to natural fibers, dandy brushes could also include nylon and plastic. If you remove the handle, the dandy brush looks a lot like an ordinary brush. To make them simpler to grip and use on your horse, most of these brushes have a curved centre. If you’re willing to shell out a little more money, you can expect a more ergonomic design and even straps that you can slip your hand through.
Dirt is removed with dandy brushes, so if your horse gets muddy a lot, you’ll want one with harder bristles. If your horse is normally clean or doesn’t like the rougher brush, you may want to choose something a bit softer. If you’re looking for a long-lasting, low-cost option, plastic bristles are your best bet. Again, the plastic handle will last longer, but many people prefer wood because of the feel of it.
When purchasing a dandy brush, you’ll also want to look at the bristle attachment method. Brush bristles are often glued into the handle, which may lead to hairs coming out, however newer glues are improving and can keep the hairs for years at a time. In other brushes, the strands are dragged through and held in place using a wiredrawn process. Wiredrawn brushes are known to endure a long time if they have little screws in them. That they are more costly than regular brushes is the only negative.
Brushes That Are Gentle On The Skin
The bulk of the models on our list are soft brushes. For delicate regions of the horse, such as the face and ears, they frequently utilize synthetic bristles but the more costly versions use actual horsehair, and they are ideally suited for grooming. Brushes that resemble dandy brushes in their fundamental design, but are more pliable. Dust and other microscopic particles may be easily removed from the horse’s coat with this brush, thanks to its close-packed bristles. The longer the hair, the more likely it is to get blocked and need to be cleaned more often. Soft brushes with extra-long hairs are called “flick brushes” because they are used to remove dust off horses in rapid, brief strokes. As with dandy brushes, the soft brush bristles will be bonded or wiredrawn.
Brushes for the body
Another soft brush with short, densely packed bristles is the Body Brush. When working with fur, these brushes often have a strap to help holding them a little easier. It eliminates dust while massaging the hose and stimulates the skin to release protective oils, resulting in a glossy coat. Using natural fibers instead of plastic is preferable since they are better at retaining oils and distributing them evenly across the body. Many experts advocate flexible leather backs for the greatest results with these brushes, which feature plastic and wooden backs.
Combs
Plastic, metal, or rubber horse combs all look the same, but the form of the teeth may make a big difference in their efficacy, and some can even tear your hair as you use them. While combing a horse’s mane and tail, you must be cautious not to tug the hair, which might lead the horse to get agitated and less likely to stay still.
A few more tidbits of wisdom
- Listen to your horse, and you’ll learn which brushes irritate him.
- Use a wider-bristled brush if you observe hair breakage.
- For best results, several experts advise against putting a brush on the tail. For tangles and loose hair, you’ll need to work with your fingers to remove them.
- Brushes from the same category might be very different, so you’ll want to test out a few different brands to see which one your horse prefers.
- To keep your horse as clean and happy as possible, you’ll definitely need more than one brush.
Conclusion
For the greatest overall brush, we suggest you look no further than the one we’ve selected.
Brushing a horse’s face using a product like the Decker Manufacturing Company Face Horse Brush is completely risk-free and gentle on the animal.
Aside from the fact that it’s exceptionally long-lasting, it’s good at cleaning dust without irritating the horse. Another sensible decision is our recommendation for the greatest value.
Exceptional Gripping Power of the Tough-1 The plastic bristles on the Mane & Tail Horse Brush make it a low-cost, long-lasting option for brushing your horse’s mane and tail.
Soft enough for use on the face, it may also be used to remove dust from the body.
This multi-purpose horse brush is ideal for both wet and dry grooming, thanks to the innovative design that allows it to be used both ways.
Dust and loose hair may be removed with this product, which also helps to produce a touch of coat.
BestForPets (bestforpets.org) hopes you’ve discovered some of the best horse brushes you’d want to experiment with after reading these reviews.
Please spread the word about the best horse brushes we’ve found on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter if they’ve been helpful to you.
Reviews
Overall, Decker Manufacturing Company’s Face Horse Brush ranks as the best in the business
As far as horse brushes go, the Decker Manufacturing Company Face Horse Brush takes the cake for the top spot. Light dusting and minor touch-ups are no problem with this brush, which has 1-inch polyester bristles that are particularly soft. Gentle brushing of the muzzle as well as the eyes and ears may be done with this. Durable and long-lasting, these synthetic bristles will serve you well for many, many years to come.
The Decker horse brush was a big hit with us and our horses. Besides the fact that it’s a bit tiny, we had no complaints.
Pros
- Exceptionally supple
- Synthetic hair, one-inch in length
- Designed for comfort and ease.
- Materials that can withstand wear and tear
Cons
- Small
Good Grip Tough-1 Best Deal on a Mane and Tail Brush for Horses
Exceptional Gripping Power of the Tough-1 For the money, we recommend the Mane & Tail Horse Brush. It boasts a streamlined design that’s simple to handle and move over your horse’s head. Brushing your horse’s face and ears with the rubber-tipped plastic bristles is soft and safe, and the design of the bristles aids in massaging your horse.
Using the Tough-1 had just one significant drawback: the plastic bristles would break after a few weeks, leaving the brush with numerous broken bristles.
Pros
- Constructed with ergonomics in mind
- Plastic bristles with rubber tips
- While brushing your teeth, give yourself a massage.
Cons
- Tangles in the hair
Grooming Brushes for Horses by Wahl
A rubberized grip makes the Wahl Professional Equine Horse Grooming Brushes simple to use and prevents hand fatigue while you are working on your horse. Although we used it extensively, none of the bristles broke. The mane and tail will be free of knots in no time.
The stiffness of the Wahl’s bristles makes it possible to injure the horse if you pull too hard on it. When it spotted the brush approaching, one of the horses would always attempt to get away from us.
Pros
- Comfy rubberized handholds
- Detangles
- Durable
Cons
- Stiff
Bling Brush for Weaver Leather
For horses and other animals, the Weaver Leather Bling Brush is a beautiful brush. With its soft polypropylene bristles, it is safe to use on the horse’s face without irritating or pulling the hair. Children and collectors alike will be delighted by its Aztec-inspired design.
However, since it is so little, the Weaver will take a long time to groom more than one horse. We also found the price to be a bit high considering its size.
Pros
- The Aztec Style
- Bristles made of soft polypropylene
Cons
- Small
- Expensive
Body Brush for Horsehair Equi-Essentials Wood-Backed
An other appealing brush with horseshoe-shaped bristles is the Equi-Essentials Wood Backed Horsehair Body Brush. The hairs are encased in a sturdy wood body that won’t split or fracture while you’re working with it. Because to the built-in straps, it’s simple to handle and won’t wear out your hands.
As a result of our displeasure with the Equine Essential’s horse brush, several bristles were already gathering in the packaging when it came. While we were able to repair the strap pins a few times, using the brush without straps made brushing the horses much more difficult due to hand weariness.
Pros
- Bristles that are dense and soft
- Wooden structure is long-lasting.
- Straps
Cons
- Hair dangles from the ceiling in the hallway.
- The belt buckle has come undone.
Dr. Barry Buttler
Dr. Barry Buttler, DVM, MS, DACVIM, is an experienced veterinarian who specializes in the care of small animals, specifically dogs. Dr. Barry K. Buttler is a member of the American Veterinary Medical Association and holds multiple certifications in small animal emergency medicine and geriatric pet health.
Veterinarian (DVM) Dr. Barry Buttler
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