Pup on patrol: Streetsboro's Mika settles in to K-9 role

Six months after joining the Streetsboro Police Department as its newest K-9, Mika is adept at finding things.

She can find her beloved tennis ball even when her handler, Detective Luke Nelson, hides it in a pocket on his vest. She's equally good at finding other things − such as drugs during training and snacks. Someday, should the occasion arise, she'll be able to locate a missing person.

"She's a full grown working dog," Streetsboro Police Chief Patricia Wain said. "And she's also a full puppy."

Mika, who joined Streetsboro Police Department when she was 3 months old, has passed her state certification and recently was sworn in as a police dog. Mayor Glenn Broska read the oath of office to her and Nelson, and then tossed a tennis ball in the air.

"If you catch this ball, that means you agree," he told the dog.

And, as it was a tennis ball, Mika caught it.

Nelson said the ball is part of Mika's training, and she's rewarded with one every time she finds what she's asked to find. But she also enjoys playing with the ball at home, where one of the other dogs in Nelson's household, also a German shepherd, will play with Mika for hours and hours.

"He's the same way," Nelson said of his older German shepherd. "Ball is life."

Big paws to fill

Mika is the daughter of Bagio, the K-9 partner of Twinsburg police officer Joshua Miktarian, who was slain in the line of duty in 2008. Years before his death, Miktarian, who had dreamed of having one of Bagio's descendants by his side, had a specimen preserved for future breeding. Last year, Miktarian's widow, Holly, and their daughter Thea decided the time was right to pull the specimen out of cold storage and breed it with their German shepherd, Nala.

After Nala gave birth to six puppies, the Miktarians checked to see if an area police department would be willing to take one of the dogs to serve as a K-9. Streetsboro already has two K-9s, Reno and Kaya, but jumped at the chance to have one of Bagio's puppies.

"I was ecstatic to carry on Josh's legacy," Wain said.

All the puppies were evaluated, and Mika stood out as the most fearless of the group, marching on the steps and not waiting for her siblings.

"One other could have done it, but they are all family pets," Wain said.

The other five puppies in the litter have found homes with private families.

Training started early

Mika and Nelson have been undergoing training at Halo K-9 Training Services since she joined the department in August. But her training actually started before then, Wain said.

Holly Miktarian did sound desensitization training, knowing that one of the dogs would be a K-9 and would need to be used to loud sounds, such as firearms. The training worked, Nelson said, and Mika is his companion when he goes to the firing range.

"She doesn't care," he said. "She just hangs out and wants her belly rubs."

Mika is trained to find drugs, items and people, and is especially adept at finding items such as narcotics. There isn't much call in Streetsboro to track people, such as suspects who flee on foot or missing children or adults, Wain said, but the department is confident that she could find a person if the situation called for it.

When she finds what she's asked for in training, she's rewarded with a ball, and her focus on the ball even in play shows a "high work drive," Nelson said.

Mika and Nelson will continue regular training throughout her career.

A dog's life

Mika is settling into Nelson's home, which includes his wife, young children and two other dogs and a cat. Mika is the only one who gets to go to work with Dad.

One time, Nelson said, he left Mika at home because he couldn't take the pup where he was going that day, and didn't want to leave her in the cruiser. His wife told him Mika was upset at being left behind the whole day.

Mika is not an "apprehension dog," and is trained to get along with people, something at which she also excels. She loves to greet visitors, and Wain said she hopes to get her out to do more public relations work, such as visiting schools.

Once she fills out a little more, Wain said, the department will look at having her fitted for body armor.

Obedience training is another future goal. While Nelson said it's good that she's not afraid to greet others, he'd like her to stop jumping on new friends.

"Right now it's a fine line between discipline and letting her explore," he said.

Reporter Diane Smith, who met Mika in person for the first time to write this story, can be reached at dsmith@recordpub.com or 330-298-1139.

This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Streetsboro Police K-9 Mika settles in to K-9 role