I don’t really mind people using the guard dog, since it does so little damage to team members. I only play on helldiver difficulty, so imo it’s just hindering, simce you can’t sneak past guards and you’ll always alert everything that you pass.
Fully agree on the shield, i used it for a bit but realized how much i’m depending on it. Now i play with light armor and a jetpack if i don’t have. Backpack support weapon, and it’s so much better for survivability, just a bit harder to get used to. Hunters used to be the bane of my existence, but turns out when you can outrun them, they are less of a problem.