Running(ish) with Trig-Dog

Lately I've been heading out to run before the Man leaves for work in the morning so I don't have to take the stroller with me (it's incredible how much easier it is to run when you're not lugging 50 pounds worth of kids plus a double stroller that is not a jogging stroller). Unfortunately for me, this means getting up before any other sane person on base is awake. I've been taking Trigs with me for company and so that I don't feel guilty about not taking him walking later in the day (the heat is so ridiculous that getting out at 5 in the morning is really the only way to bearably get outside exercise).

So Trigs and I have been having fun times running together. For the most part. One day we saw an armadillo. That was pretty exciting. And I can always count on him to protect me from the rabid golf-course rabbits. I've discovered though that there are both pros and cons to running with Trigger. I thought I would share. See below list.

Pros:

• I can pat myself on the back for being a good dog owner. I can also rub in the Man's face that the dog he signed the Great Dog-Deal of 2011 for is finally being taken care of properly. And not by the person who signed the Dog-Deal. This gives me unutterable amounts of pleasure and self-congratulation. Somehow the dog still likes him better. Go figure. 
• I have someone to give motivational speeches to while I run. If any of you have ever gone running with my father, you will know this is a family thing. I grew up on the motivational run speech. Frequently, Dad tried to take advantage of the fact that I was too out of breath to respond and would try to brain wash me with politics. He didn't know that my lack of response was from a lack of brain activity, not a lack of breath. When people start talking about politics I go to my happy place where the sound of the ocean surf is loud enough to drown out any talk of government and political parties.
• At the end, Trigs and I can race. This needs no explanation. Racing is fun.

Cons:

• Trigger has the smallest bladder of any dog ever. He has to stop at least three times to pee. One day it was five. I mean, good grief, if you're going to stop, just get it all out at once. It's not like we're running for that long...
• Trigs possesses a rabbit magnet. By which I mean, if there is a rabbit anywhere in his vicinity, he is programmed to chase and incapable of keeping himself from lunging wildly and barking pathetically. This obviously derails my run. One, because it's hard to run one direction when your forty pound dog is trying desperately to go in the other direction. Two, because I then have to stop to deal with the problem, and doggy-discipline is tough when you have no upper body strength. Maybe I should consider doing interval speed training that involves letting Trigs chase down the rabbits while I chase after him.
• Trigger really looks forward to running with me. So much so that every morning now he comes in the room at five a.m. and puts his cold snout on my face even if it's not a run morning and in spite of the fact that we don't leave for a half an hour anyway. It's a bit of a shock to wake up to. Also, the fact that Trigger looks forward to something doesn't make me as happy as you'd think it would because I'm just not a nice person.

At any rate, feel free to weigh in. Should I keep taking Triggy (as Little now calls him) running with me or should I force the mangy mutt to stay home and get fat?