Originally Posted by
ToddG
A properly set up age/size-appropriate shotgun (like the 20g Youth mentioned by F2S), with light loads, is every bit as easy to learn on as a handgun. It's also substantially less likely to get pointed in an unsafe direction (much easier to point a handgun at yourself than a 18-20" bbl shotgun).
In about an hour you can teach a non-gun person to load a shotgun, fire it, and keep it in a safe but ready condition. In the event of danger, all she has to do is rack a round in the chamber, shoulder the gun, and get a long-barreled shoulder weapon properly aligned on a close range target. Pull the trigger. Let the little lead balls do the rest.
The odds of needing multiple shots is far less. If anyone wants to argue that a decent 20g buck load is no more lethal than a handgun round, have at it.
I do not think the shotgun is an ideal home defense weapon. But it is a perfectly good alternative, and a superior one for folks with minimal training.
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