6 months with our rescue pit bull and I have a lot of feelings

We adopted Duke in September from a county shelter. He was listed as a 3-year-old pit mix, had been there 8 months, and his photos made him look terrified. My husband thought i was crazy. I filled out the application anyway.

The first two months were rough. Duke didn't know how to go up stairs. He'd never seen carpet. He flinched at everything and would go completely still if you raised your voice. We had to teach him that the vacuum wasn't going to eat him, that the mail slot was normal, that humans leaving the house meant they'd come back. He had zero training - sit, stay, nothing. We started from scratch.

But here we are at 6 months and this dog is a completely different animal. He knows 12 commands, he sleeps in our bed (yeah we caved), he has a best friend named Cooper who's a 4lb chihuahua that lives next door. Duke weighs 68lbs and just lays there while Cooper tries to fight him. It's genuinely the funniest thing i've ever seen.

He still has some reactive moments on leash and we're working through it. But if you're thinking about adopting a "difficult" dog from a shelter - the overlooked ones, the scared ones, the ones who've been there too long - please consider it. Duke was written off. He was 8 months from probably being euthanized. And now he's the best thing in our house.