Arming and Equiping pets.. worth it?

[htabdoolb]

I recently started a necromancer, and am having a whole lot of fun with her. One of the things I've noticed is that giving my low level pet specific weapons, such as a tarnished halberd, will significantly improve their damage. My level five pet went from hitting for 10 to hitting for 23 when I gave it a rusty old halberd that I'd sharpened up, at apparently the same delay as when unarmed. Even double hitting occasionally, too, which was unexpected but nice.

Would giving my pets armor similarly increase their survivability? I've tried giving my level 9 pet cloth armor and patchwork armor, and I think it is a bit tougher, but I'm not sure. Has anyone done any tests? The wiki says that pets will wear armor, but do they actually gain AC from it? A fullish suit of patchwork/tattered is pretty easy to put together, and would give 30+ AC.. which is pretty significant at lower levels.

Are there more tips for making pets tougher and/or better damage dealers? Any knowledge from more experienced pet users would be appreciated!