Regal. Loyal. Quiet. Territorial. Mika is a facilitator, life-changer and life-saver. She has seen and experienced much, yet remains steady as a rock. And at 12 years old, I know her remaining time with us is short, but I have a hard time imagining life without her.
If it weren't for Mika, there might not be a Juan and Darrow. Mika introduced herself to me at a candlelight vigil the night after the 9/11 attacks. In what I've since learned to be an uncharacteristic moment for Mika, she pulled on her leash, dragged herself over to where I sat and licked my hand - the hand of a stranger. Juan, my partner now but just another vigil attendee moments before Mika made her move, was on the other end of that leash. I often tease Juan and say that I spotted him and purposely put some food in my hand, knowing that his dog would catch the scent and come over.
Were it not for Mika, Milo might have missed his chance at being rescued or, worse yet, staying alive. Two years into our relationship, Juan and I wondered if Mika needed some company. She seemed lethargic, detached and maybe even depressed. We knew that finding a playmate for Mika would be no easy task. She was not, and still is not, a very social dog and we worried about how she would handle a four-legged addition to the family. Mika was going to have to tell us who would be a good choice. On Labor Day weekend in 2003, we took Mika with us to the animal shelter to meet Milo, a dog we had seen on petfinder.com. We let the two meet and in yet another uncharacteristic display, Mika went almost immediately into play-mode. While Juan and I were initially ambivalent about Milo, Mika was clear. She liked him and that was really all we needed to know. I picked Milo up from the shelter that weekend, only days before he was scheduled to be put down.
We weren't sure how Mika would be with a baby. My nieces have visited us twice in the past couple of years, but they have been out of diapers for a long time now and rarely drool or scream, except when candy or cakes are within reach. Mika gets along fine with them both. Ty's arrival back in October prompted little reaction from Mika though. She sniffed, wagged, sniffed some more and then went back to her favorite spot by the dining room table. Since then, she and Ty seem to have reached some sort of agreement. Ty has clearly agreed to occasionally screech at Mika while running into her with his walker and Mika has agreed to get out of his way as quickly as her old bones will allow...without eating him for dinner first. She has become very tolerant in her old age.
What has surprised us is that Mika has taken on the role of Ty's protector. She has made it her responsibility to inspect visitors holding or playing with Ty. She'll go right up to whoever it is, stick her nose right in the situation and sniff around for a bit. "Just checking things out," Mika seems to be saying. She takes a few seconds and then goes back to her favorite spot.
Ty and Mika aren't exactly the picture-perfect image of man and his best friend. Their relationship is more like patient old aunt and sometimes-pesky, loud nephew. There'll be no chasing of sticks and balls or playful romps in the yard in their future together. That's ok though. Mika seems content in her role as the family guardian and protector of Ty. And Ty is definitely happy to have yet another set of eyes watching out for him. I couldn't ask for much more than that.
--D
