MT. JULIET, Tenn. (WKRN) — At one Mt. Juliet sanctuary, nobody says that you can't teach an old dog new tricks.

Old Friends Senior Dog Sanctuary gives senior dogs a second chance. It's hard not to fall in love with the residents.

“Tommy is a love bug! Y'all will love him,” Mirena Cissell, the Executive Director of Old Friends Senior Dog Sanctuary, told News 2 as she introduced Tommy to the crew. "...They brighten your world. You just don’t realize that you need them in your life."

Cissell started out in healthcare before completely switching career paths. 

“I kind of went from old people to old dogs,” Cissell said. 

But when it comes to these senior dogs, they have a lot of life yet to live.

“Some of our dogs can run circles around some of my younger dogs,” Cissell said. 

The concept of a senior dog sanctuary is one that's pretty unique, but what also makes the sanctuary unique is that the facility operates solely through donations. 

“I think what makes it unique is that we specifically work with seniors and because seniors are so much [more] at risk in shelters, there's a need for that,” Cissell told News 2.

The majority of these dogs came from shelters and rescues. Those donations help pay for food, medical expenses, physical therapy and grooming. 

“It provides for the physical therapist that comes in. It provides it for the caretakers to be able to take care of them," Cissell said. "We have about 60 staff members, and we have to pay them. I mean, you come to work, and you want to be paid."

These dogs are working behind the scenes, generating more than 1 million followers on social media from all over the world. The attention has brought in hundreds of volunteers to help walk and love on the dogs. 

“I think it honestly just started with the cute pictures we used to post ten years ago because believe it or not, flip phones did most of those pictures,” Cissell said.

More than 80 dogs are housed at the sanctuary. While some prefer to live alone, others are more social. In addition to the dogs at the facility, about 400 dogs are in forever foster homes. Some, though, may never leave. 

“This is the rainbow bridge wall ... these are all the dogs that have passed since we've moved into this building ... both in foster and in sanctuary,” Cissell said, gesturing to a wall with the names of every dog and some brief descriptions about what they were like.

As Mirena continued to guide News 2's tour of the sanctuary, she made sure to introduce the crew to one of her favorites. 

“This is Winston. He’s missing one of his legs," Cissell said. He came in with two broken spots on his legs, so we had to amputate it here." 

Mirena fosters Winston because, as previously mentioned, it’s hard not to fall in love here. 

"He comes home back and forth with me to work, and he’s the boss man of this place ... They have so much life left to live, and they teach you so much more than sometimes some of the younger dogs do,” Cissell said. 

If you are interested in donating or volunteering, you can head to this link.

News Source : https://www.wkrn.com/news/local-news/on-tour-middle-tn/ofsds/