What are the best horse clippers to buy for my horse?

We have recently written a series of guides helping you to choose the best clipper for your horse and yourself. We've summarised some of the key points here, but for all the details (including the pros and cons!) view the guides here.

The best horse clippers to buy for your horse will be based on a few questions you need to ask yourself.  This will allow you to make a more decisive, cost effective and accurate purchase in the long term.

There are many horse clippers and trimmers to choose from, which can make the choice difficult unless thorough research has been done, or recommendation has been given.

Below are questions we ask our customers before advising the brand and model of clipper that will accurately suit their individual needs.

• How regularly will you be clipping?  Every month throughout the year? Or just two or three times during the winter clipping season?
• The type of coats you will be clipping, fine and soft, or coarser and wirier?
• Is the horse young, nervous or noise sensitive?
• Have you clipped before?
• Is this your first purchase of horse clippers?
• Do you have access to mains power, or would a cordless battery clipper be a convenient option?
• Is the weight and shape of the clipper a consideration?
• Do you have a budget to keep to?
• Are you replacing an existing set of horse clippers?

If you are clipping regularly, we advise looking horse clippers in the medium or heavy duty range.  These are designed for more frequent use and for more challenging clipping conditions, where coats can be very thick and coarse or for professional use.

Light duty horse clippers are often perfect for the one-horse owner, wishing to clip during the clipping season and for general tidying and trimming up throughout the year.  A dual-purpose option for both clipping and trimming with no need to purchase dedicated trimmers.

Light duty horse clippers such as the Liveryman Harmony Plus, Aesculap Durati, Heiniger Saphir are all fabulous for clipping noise sensitive horses as well as the young or nervous ones.  This category of horse clipper is much quieter, smaller and takes the snap on blade system, giving flexibility for using various grades of blades for tidying, trimming, and blending and a wide blade for clipping the coat and larger areas.  It requires no tensioning and is simple to use.  They are available as cordless or mains. 

All battery options will be more expensive than mains versions, so if price is consideration, mains horse clippers may become your first choice.

Light weight horse clippers are often favoured by owners who have wrist injuries or weakness or have small hands.  All the light duty clippers are suitable, and in the medium duty range, the lightest would be the Lister Eclipse and the narrowest would be the Aesculap Bonum to choose.

If you haven’t clipped before, check out the brands that are easy to tension.  This is the most frequently overlooked consideration but can cause the most problems for first timers.  We suggest Lister clippers as the easiest when you are looking for medium or heavy-duty horse clipper.

If you prefer keeping as safe as possible, then check out the cordless options.  Full size clippers that have this option and have the battery integrated in the handpiece include the Heiniger Xplorer, Aesculap Bonum, and Lister Eclipse.  These are all reputable clipper brands who will give a two-year warranty for peace of mind.

If your choice is for a budget friendly clipper that is full size and can power through the most challenging conditions, then check out the Clipster Farm Clip – this is also re-chargeable.  For a mains option in the budget friendly range, opt for the Lister Star Special Edition.

 

If you are looking at replacing your horse clipper for the same brand, this makes complete sense as existing blades will be able to be used and will save money.  It also means the tensioning system will remain the same, and familiarity of use is a comfortable solution.