Sheldon, Iowa — The newest member of the Sheldon Police Department, K9 Balin, will be arriving in town this week, according to Sheldon City Manager Sam Kooiker.
Kooiker says Balin is Hindi for “Mighty Sword”. The first syllable of the dog’s name rhymes with Pal, according to Kooiker. Balin’s full name is Balin Tartarus Nefarius. He was born in the Czech Republic on December 7, 2019.
According to the dog’s breeder, Balin is a 14 month old medium-large, strong, male shepherd with lots of energy and excellent working drive. His social behavior is great. He is also good on all type of surfaces. His obedience is good, his protection is very strong. He searches for a ball with persistence. He is accurate and doesn’t make false markings His tracking is also very good, according to the breeder.
Balin recently arrived in the U.S. and will begin his training with his handler, Officer Eric Meinecke, next week. Kooiker says Officer Meinecke and Chief Scott Burtch will be going to Minnesota this week to pick up Balin and bring him to Sheldon.
Officer Meinecke, Chief Burth and Kooiker all express their gratitude for the generosity of the community, which made the acquisition of Balin possible.
