ive said it b4 and ill say it again but if u r a first time dog owner, either as an adult or ever, i really dont think theres any point in getting a "starter breed" for dogs when u should really just be getting what u are passionate about and sincerely want, and have done ur research about and think u can be prepared for. if u have always wanted a doberman and u think one would fit well into ur life then get a doberman. if u get a lab bcuz dog people are telling you its 'easier' then u r with a dog for 10+ years that u didnt want as much and u didnt research as much, and every dog has its own quirks and "issues", some are more tolerable to an individual than others. every dog is going to have problems and frustrating moments and if its the dog you LOVED and wanted badly, the issues are going to be a lot easier for you to deal with. there r plenty of dog people who could breeze by with a "hard" breed but an "easy" dog thats recommended as a 'starter breed' all the time (labrador, pug, "ex racing greyhound", etc lol) would not fit what they want and might be much more overwhelming, and they wouldve been a lot happier getting the breed they'd originally wanted anyway. your passion for a particular breed or type of dog is there for a reason. respect that and go with your gut.

would love for someone who understands cat coat genetics to chime in with more info, but from a quick google search all i’m seeing is that a few cats in Finland have popped up with a roan-like coat pattern?

They found the mutation that causes the salmiak pattern shown above, it's a deletion downstream of the KIT gene (KIT controls several other, but not all, of the other white cat markings). It's a recessive mutation, Photo c in the figure below shows a normal patterned carrier next to his salmiak patterned brother. The carriers may have some white on their coat, but it's unclear if it is due to the single salmiak allele or another cause.

Now We Ride! - new original available in my shop. It will also be my gay rodeo release in August. I’ll have a booth at the Santa Fe Gay Rodeo