best options....
I haul cows. My hotshot goes home with me. just drop the two little brass tabs straight on it's maraccas, and depress the trigger. zap YELP! ::run:: very effective.
I see a dog? city or no, I grab the M1 carbine. As well as a shooty end, I got a beaty end too. Buttstroke right outta infantry school. Takes the fight outta an eight weight calf in a hurry. Alternately you can install a bayonet and augment the shooty end with stabby. Unfortunately I don't have a bayonet for my carbine.
Flashlights are great, but the classic black maglite is really easy to lose. I'm missing three in my house. This is gonna sound stupid, But I like the fisher price flashlights. They have a handle, so I can include them in my forearm grip. They're tough. They use standard bulbs, and you have access to a red filter with the twist of a knob.
Robe with big pockets.. makes you look like a cheese-nob, but is a great place to jam a pistol.
In ending, a police sap is a good tool for dogs. I also keep a fireplace poker by my door... with the shotguns, rifles, trench knife, and golf club that live there