grooming
n. uncountablen. the act of cleaning and brushing an animal to keep it healthy and neat. It can also describe how people take care of their own appearance.
n. the process of cleaning, brushing, or tending to the physical appearance of an animal or person. In a biological context, it refers to social behaviors involving the removal of parasites and debris from the fur or skin.
Regular grooming keeps your dog's coat shiny and healthy.
Monkeys spend a significant portion of their day engaged in social grooming to strengthen group bonds.
While individual grooming is essential for hygiene, many primates utilize mutual grooming as a sophisticated mechanism for conflict resolution and maintaining social hierarchies within the troop.
Commonly used as a gerund to describe a continuous activity; often paired with 'social' or 'personal'.