What are you thinking? Never give a woman a shotgun for home protection. Even the lighter ones are heavy and cumbersome, and even large women have smaller hands than the average male. Also, the explosive recoil might knock her off her feet. Especially if she is a petite woman. And with a shotgun she gets off one shot. That’s it. She won’t have time to reload if there are multiple intruders. Your best bet is to get her a Ruger .223 Mini-14 with a 20-round clip. They’re lightweight and easy to handle, and they have almost no recoil. Back when I was a kid, they used to call it “the lady’s hunting rifle”.
I’m the woman. I’ve fired a shotgun (my dad’s) before - quail hunting. Is a home invasion shotgun, 20 gauge, so much worse? How so? And I’m not petite. 6 feet, though not too heavy. I think I can manage it, no?
If you have not explored the penetration of a .223, you should. It is an eyeopener. It easily penetrated the flak jackets we wore in RVN, as well as thinner wood beams used in bunkers.
Luke, Luke come away from the dark side! Ruger Mini-14 is a turd and will always be a turd. The only way to deal with a turd is to plant it in the ground and hope something grows.