What Is A Sweat Scraper?

A sweat scraper is a blunt metal or plastic blade that's used to remove excess water from a horse.

Despite the name, you don't just run a sweat scraper over a horse that's sweaty. The sweat scraper is actually used to remove water after bathing a horse or hosing it down (horses, like humans, appreciate a cold shower after a workout on a hot day).

There are three basic types of sweat scraper:

1. A plastic handle with a plastic and rubber blade set at right angles to it. This kind is most commonly seen in Europe.

2. A long curved plastic stick with one end slightly rounded. This is by far the cheapest kind.

3. A metal loop with a wooden or leather handle on either end, the handles tied together with a leather strap. This kind has shallow, blunt teeth on one side. The flat side is used to remove water. The toothed side is used to help shed out excess hair. Because of this, these are also called "shedding blades."

A shedding blade. Source: BLW via Wikimedia Commons.