2" 12 ga shotgun shell for HD

Having a plan on how you protect your family in an emergcy is just as important as having something to protect them . Every one knowing where to go is something you drill into every one. With out this out this you multipy many times over the chance of some one getting hurt . I really don't care how you got the house when the family is asleep. you need to be between entries and kids . Want solutions move rooms around to where they are more defensive . If you do it yourself it isn't that expensive Me personally taking care of family is more important than when it come to a house . As far as #8's for defence A coworker of mine years ago was shot in a tree stand 15-20 yards he moved to let the guy know he was there and the guy shot him he was wearing carhart artic coveralls flannel shirt and longjohns no shot broke the skin (broke a bone in his wrist from falling out of the tree) if you must use shot use #2 know this if 2 sheets of drywall stops what ever load you use it does not have a good chance of ending a threat
17 years ago Thursday We lost a 17 year old son to a car accident I know what burrying a child is like . Sometimes no matter what you do will stop tragedy. So you do everything to tip odds to your favor I would sleep on the floor in the hall before I let children sleep between me and a door even now when grandkids stay you have to get by my bedroom to get to where they sleep. you can buy or build another house you can't replace kids
Roy

Every single thread turns into a buckshot vs birdshot debate.

If what I've learned from law enforcement and my shooting experience has taught me anything it's to use what WILL work. Not what might. I've been taught to take the maybe, might, or should work out of the equation when it comes to things as serious as using or carrying a gun. Especially in life or death situations. I'm not going to risk the life of myself, a brother in blue or a loved one because I didn't or couldn't do what was necessary. Especially when it comes to something as overrated as over penetration. For me it is a no brainer

Yes, I understand collateral damage but you have to be smart. Yes, a stray round MAY hit someone. It's happened in the past. But anything that is going to reliably stop an attacker, hopped on on drugs or not, is going to pass through a few layers of sheet rock. That's just the way it is. There's no magical round that will stop an intruder but stop immediately when hitting drywall. It's just not going to happen until there's a breakthrough in physics and engineering. In my opinion, not using the best of what is available and/or feasible is irresponsible and you're doing a disservice to those that you're trying to protect.

And to the people that say "But you wouldn't let me shoot you with a load of birdshot" or something to that effect. No, I wouldn't. But I also wouldn't let you shoot me with a rubber band. Does that make rubber bands an effective HD choice? I would think not.

Know the layout of your dwelling, who's sleeping where, what rooms are what and if there's any backstops. Do your own testing to see what works best.

CAN birdshot kill someone? Yes. But so can a pen to the neck. In most circumstances, birdshot creates a nasty surface wound which can be deceiving but what pellets do reach the vital organs don't do much damage. And bleeding out typically takes a long time.

Staggering loads is also not a good idea in my opinion (I.E birdshot, then buckshot). No matter what out of those two you shoot someone with, the police, prosecutor, and judge will treat that as using lethal force. And you may only be able to get one shot off to begin with so make it count. No warning shots, or hoping the birdshot will put someone down. Because like I said, no matter what is is considered using lethal force.

For me personally, I would go with nothing less than #4 buckshot. For an apartment, maybe T, BBB or F shot if you're nervous. Ideally, in a normal house #1 or 0BK is a good choice if you can find it although 00Bk and 000bk are more common and perfectly fine as well.

Birdshot is for hunting, practice or if you have absolutely nothing else available to you.

Just my .02

I may seem brash but when it comes to as serious of a topic as this I am going to be. It is not something to be taken lightly and I see far too many people that don't take this stuff seriously.