I don't recommend them for home defense.
The spread is quite large? At short distances it is not. Double check those facts please. Worse, women and children have a very difficult time handling a shotgun. You never want an intruder to hear you cycle a shotgun. Keep the weapon loaded and ready. The time it takes you to cycle a shell may cost you your life.
We should not worry about scaring anyone. If you have a weapon at the ready, that means someone has to die immediately. Kill them. Don't scare them. You're right about penetration, but you should not fire unless you know what's behind your target. Then use a weapon that has as much penetration as possible because your predator may very well be wearing body armor.
Shotguns are good for taking out drones however, and I own a couple for that reason specifically.
I have to disagree. As a smaller framed female, yes the thought of a shotgun as a home defense weapon intimidated me at first. But that's what time at the range and training is for. Just like any "protection", you need to spend time with it and feel comfortable. A mock run of getting out of bed in the dark and quietly getting ready doesn't take much time and should be done once and a while. I like the fact that I have some spread to work with and love the stopping power. I can cycle really quickly and stagger my shells. 00Buck is going to stop anyone dumb enough to enter with the intention of harming me and a slug will not be slowed by some vest.
Don't get me wrong....I have and understand the importance of a handgun. I also train and own a few long guns. But I LOVE my Maverick88. I made it comfortable and a bit more "me" as modifications can be done rather easily. Sorry for the long reply. : )