Someone I know, the owner of an ist D has had a Samsung GX10 on loan for a week.
He is not impressed. One thing which is driving him nuts is that he cannot change the settings (ISO, WB) while the camera is writing to memory. He can do this on the D and sees is as an obstacle to changing. He is generally not impressed with the Samsung. He hates the position of the green button too, and says the WB for artificial lighting is terrible.
Can the K10D cope with setting changes whilst writing to memory or not?

Ok well I'd suggest as fast a lens as you can - at least a 2.8, and one that allows you a bit of distance from you subject so that it doesn't feel threatened by you - wouldn't want you bitten by an upset dog would we!
A friend who has a KM uses either a 100mm or a 200mm 2.8 (obviously not always at 2. and gets truly stunning photos of dogs. She is able to capture the very soul of the animal. A good zoom would work too -probably even better as you wouldn't have to keep swapping lenses.
For dogs you can try and get some action photos too, always appreciated by besotted owners, especially as they are nearly impossible to take of your own dog! (There speaks the voice of exxperience )

What pets do you have? The technique will be much the same (focus on the eyes, get down to their level etc. etc) for any pet, but the best lens may vary depending on whether it is a goldfish or a Shire horse...

Don't forget that the 360 doesn't cater for the digital crop factor, something the 540 does do.

I've made a note, now lets hope the weather is good!

But if you want the, imho, oversharp photos that a Canon produces then why not buy a Canon in the first place? I don't like the sharpness of Canon photos - it is ott.

I have used the mode for infill flash at night. Just couldn't get it right on my own and the sun was sinking fast...it worked perfectly. Once tried the sport mode to get my dog in full gallop but didn't like the result. I also used auto for a long time until I finally plucked up courage to switch it to M

If you have updated your firmware it will happily accept a 2Gb card. I have one in mine right now. The original firmware was limited to 1GB but was soon updated.

Have a great trip to Kenya. I am sooo jealous. Whereabouts are you going?

This time last year I was in Tanzania, in the middle of the migration, watching the birth of a wildebeest calf, astounding. That and the Cheetahs we found when no-one else was around have to be the highlights. Hope to get back there sometime.

Look forward to seeing your photos when you get back.

Well I took my Ds out to the woods in the snow. It was snowing too much to get any really good shots, but I wasn't too worried about snow getting in to it. ( I did carry it in a bum-bag when not shooting.) It survived whale watching in the pouring rain off Boston last year (it was so wet then that we were soaked to the skin, literally) so the snow isn't a worry to me. I'd get out there with your K10D and get snapping.