Rocky has arrived in Heidelberg, but unlike his motion picture namesake he won't be fighting any rounds in the ring.

Instead, the pure-bred German shepherd dog will be making the rounds with police Officer Dennis Dixon later this year as part of the borough's new K-9 unit.

Rocky, from the Czech Republic, weighs in at 65 pounds, and is scheduled to undergo 12 weeks of rigorous training at the Pittsburgh Police K-9 school in preparation for the main event, when he hits the streets with Officer Dixon to take on drug dealers and other lawbreakers.

While his main opponent will be anyone who breaks the law, Rocky will serve the community in other ways, too.

Heidelberg Police Chief Vernon Barkley said Rocky's tracking ability will be vital in locating children or elderly people who become lost.

Once Rocky completes his course in tracking, Chief Barkley said, he will undergo additional training for drug detection, with emphasis on identifying cocaine, heroin, and marijuana in the course of traffic stops and other investigations.

Another major part of the dog's training will be to learn to work with and obey Officer Dixon, who will also train with Rocky at the K-9 center.

"I see Rocky as being a deterrent to crime," Chief Barkley said. He plans to assign Officer Dixon and Rocky to street patrols in neighborhoods and in the new community park on Industry Way.

But before Rocky became part of Heidelberg's police department, there was the tough question of how the borough would pay for a permanent K-9 unit.

Heidelberg is a small borough with a population of about 1,200. In the past, council members have had to come up with some creative ways to pay for municipal services, including giving up their own pay for several years to help finance street repairs.

In this case, though, the borough didn't have to go it alone.

The foundation of a well-known Pittsburgh sports figure, and a private donor, who lives in Bethel Park, helped the borough come up with money it needed to fund the K-9 unit.

First to help was the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation that gave the borough an $8,000 grant in April. The money was used to buy equipment for the K-9 unit, retrofit a patrol car, and pay for insurance and training costs.

The Roethlisberger Foundation whose head is the Steelers' quarterback helps local law enforcement departments purchase and train police dogs.

Another boost came when businessman John Hayes, president of CIC Pittsburgh LLC, a manufacturer of industrial furnaces, gave Heidelberg $5,000 for the K-9 unit. Council used $4,950 of the donation to buy Rocky from Ideal Police Canine in Muncy, Lycoming County.

In June, council members passed a resolution recognizing Mr. Hayes for his donation, and Mayor Kenneth LaSota, who oversees the police department, presented Mr. Hayes with a copy.

"I want to thank the borough and the chief for this honor," Mr Hayes said. "It will hang very proudly in my office."

After the meeting, Mr. Hayes said he decided to make the donation because he believes, "You can't just take. You have to give back to the community." And even though he lives in Bethel Park, he said he wanted to help Heidelberg because of all the damage the borough suffered in the 2004 Hurricane Ivan Flood.

"I know what it's like to be flooded," he said after his own office in Collier was damaged twice by flooding.

Also, he said, he has known Officer Dixon since he was child, and believes he will make a good K-9 officer.

In May, officer Dixon introduced Rocky and demonstrated some of his potential abilities in tracking by instructing Rocky to find a red rag hidden in the meeting room.

Rocky also revealed an unexpected talent for reducing paperwork.

Twice, he snatched, papers from Chief Barkley's hand when the Chief walked by. He then gave the papers a good chewing before relinquishing them. Luckily, they weren't anything that couldn't be duplicated.

"Don't you feed this dog?" the chief joked.

"Not enough," Officer Dixon said, adding he expects Rocky won't be eating any paperwork in the future once he becomes used to an American diet with an occasional hot dog and hamburger thrown in. He said he expects Rocky, who is two years old, to gain about ten more pounds.

When he's not on duty, Rocky will live at home with Officer Dixon, his wife, daughter and son.

"He's very social, and friendly," officer Dixon said.