Healing Harley: Rescued greyhound comforts Alzheimer's patients

A tall black and tan brindled greyhound trotted through the halls of the DeKalb County Rehab & Nursing Center on Tuesday afternoon. Some of the residents ignored him. Some watched him detachedly, and others reached out their hands as he loped by. The dog is Harley, and like the patients, he lives in the Alzheimer's disease unit at the county nursing home. Harley is not a certified therapy dog, unit director Deb Greiner said, but his presence is therapeutic to many of the unit's 38 residents. &#8220It's neat to see how much an animal brings out the person who's in there,” she said. &#8220There's often so much left that we miss.” Petting an animal can lower blood pressure and reduce pain, Greiner said. People who have lost much of the ability