How Horses Helped a Law Student

On July 4, 2016, law student Leah McKeever went to the barn for a special project. She and her mom, Georgiann D’Aniello, dipped brushes in red, white and blue paint. Their canvas? McKeever’s blue roan horse, Rosie Blue Music Box (aka “Rosie”).

“That day combined three things that I enjoy: horses, painting and spending time with my mom,” McKeever recalls.

When they finished decorating Rosie, McKeever saddled up and D’Aniello snapped a photo to document the moment. The picture became a tangible example of something horses bring to McKeever’s life: the ability to live in the present.

Law and Horses

McKeever’s love of horses began at a young age. Inspired by her mom’s love for the animals, she spent her childhood days playing with plastic horses, watching western films and poring over horse-themed books. As she grew up, D’Aniello and McKeever enjoyed guided trail rides together.

“I have always loved horses ever since I can remember,” McKeever says.

Just like her love for horses, McKeever’s interest in the law started early on. D’Aniello recalls her daughter boldly declaring her intent to pursue a career in law at just 8 years old.

“Who was I to discourage that?” D’Aniello says.

Many years later, McKeever completed her undergraduate education and prepared to start law school at the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law in her hometown of Tucson, Ariz.

Close to that time, D’Aniello was taking riding lessons. She’d purchased a package of lessons but found that due to time constraints, she wasn’t able to finish them. D’Aniello offered the remaining sessions to McKeever, who accepted. That decision led McKeever to something that would help her navigate the next four years of her life: Rosie.

D’Aniello remembers being concerned about the expense a horse would pose to McKeever, but also being supportive of her daughter pursuing a healthy outlet. Regardless of her feelings, D’Aniello saw her daughter was determined to purchase Rosie.

“When Leah makes up her mind, Leah makes up her mind,” she says. “You can’t talk her out of anything.”

McKeever knew keeping Rosie in her life during law school would pose financial challenges, but she couldn’t see herself moving forward any other way. She worked out a plan using her savings to budget for Rosie during school.

“If I have something that I love and something that I’m passionate about, I don’t think of excuses or having to get rid of anything,” McKeever explains. “I try and think of how I’m going to make it work.”

Finding the Present

McKeever remembers every minute of her time being claimed during law school. She constantly felt guilty if she wasn’t reading or studying.

“You always have this pressure on you to get a bunch of readings done,” McKeever recalls. “Sometimes the amount of readings are just not plausible to get through.”

To escape school stress, McKeever turned to two of her passions: working out and riding Rosie. The first helped her stay physically healthy but didn’t keep her mind from thoughts of schoolwork. The latter, however, completely captured her attention.

“Going and spending time with Rosie was the only time that I didn’t think about school,” McKeever says.

Riding Rosie forced McKeever’s brain to remain in the present. If her attention drifted, Rosie brought her back to the current moment. The horse would break gait or even shy at an object if she felt McKeever wasn’t focused on her.

“I maintained a good mental health in law school, and I attribute that to having my horse,” says McKeever. (See “Mental Health Benefits of Horses,” below.)

McKeever worked with Rosie four to five times a week throughout law school. In 2017, she successfully graduated from her program.

No Regrets

Several years have passed since McKeever’s time in law school, but the Fourth of July she spent with Rosie and her mother remains seared in her memory.

D’Aniello witnessed how horses impact McKeever first hand, and doesn’t see her daughter ever giving them up.

“For Leah, Rosie is her great escape, and therefore her happy place,” says D’Aniello.

Now a practicing lawyer, McKeever spends her days in the courtroom, seeking justice for the people she represents. Beyond a reasonable doubt, she believes it’s Rosie that helped her get there.

“She helped me through many tough things, law school being one of them, and I’m eternally grateful to her for that,” she says.

If given the chance to do law school again, McKeever wouldn’t hesitate to bring Rosie along for the ride.

“That’s one decision in my life that I’ll never regret.”

Mental Health Benefits of Horses Lesli Figueiredo, MA, LPC, owns and operates Freedom Reigns Counseling in Burleson, Texas. She entered the field of Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (counseling) in 2008 as a horse specialist and has been practicing as a licensed counselor since 2014. Through her practice, she regularly works with college-age students who experience stress and anxiety from school. Figueiredo describes numerous ways horses can help humans in a counseling or therapeutic setting, but she also testifies that recreational work with horses can improve mental health. “The huge benefit of horses is that they provide rhythmic, repetitive, predictable movement when we’re riding,” she says. For example, the walk is four beats, the trot is two beats, the canter is three beats, and so on. Figueiredo explains we can count on those patterns to exist, and their rhythmic movement can calm your nervous system and brain. Figueiredo also points out that horses are prey animals and must live in the present to survive. When a person works with them, they must live in the present too—something Leah McKeever experienced firsthand.

 

This article about Leah McKeever appeared in the September 2023 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!