I'm rethinking my ammo for defense lately.

STAGGERED: JHP/FMJ/JHP/FMJ.....OR VICE VERSA

It is so funny how everyone has different experience. Solids on sheep are less than spectacular even from a .50 in my experience. It seams deer aren’t real picky on solid or jacket, and hogs it all about size. For me I like a good bonded jacket bullet for everything. On deer the bonded hp opens up and doesn’t exit. Same on hogs unless they or big or you hit bone then they turn in to a solid by shedding the mushroom, and will quite often exit. I have shot clean through the shoulders of a 200lbs hog and broke the hip on another one with one shot from my 41GNR2. And with the same load shot several 90 lbs does in the shoulders and not had an exit. The running joke is “ how do it know” this is the 210gr Speer deepcurl or gold dot bullet at a muzzle Velocity 1800+ FPS. Obviously if you put a hole all the way through anything in the right spot it will die, but I have enough sheep and hogs shot with solids in the right spot to know the animal need to be convinced after the fact. Now I am also sure there are a lot of folks that only hunt with solids with way more experience than me that can shed some light on this
But this is just me from my experience

Until you scratch up $30......

how the JHPs did on a bear? And how the FMJs did? Keep that in mind. The chances that you will be attacked by a naked skinny guy is fairly slim.

defensive loads against humans or animal critters. If humans, I once asked Masad Ayoob about the subject and he told me to always carry what ever the police carried in your state. He described a lot of horror stories where he testified as an expert witness where the DA would make out the defender to be a cold blood killer because he hand loaded special killing bullets and the juries bought it. In all cases where the defender used the same bullets the police used they were acquitted of murder. Some still faced manslaughter charges but most of those ended up being dropped. I took that to heart and have carried what the police carry ever since. Currently it is 135 grain Hornady Law Enforcement rounds in a Glock 19. AS for animal critters, unless your game laws are peculiar, you are pretty much on your own. I have used both solids and expanding bullets on varying game. On really big game I like a bonded expanding bullet like the Hornady DGX or equivalent (elk or bear). For deer, if you are close enough a 158 grain .38 in the right spot will kill them. I have used an arrow that weighted in total around 350 grains (head, shaft and fletching)at 290 fps and had the arrow go right though and the dropped within 50 feet. Point being in my opinion as JT and others have said, it is all about shot placement....YOU even told me that once when we were trying to figure out that .243 you helped me sight in.