Chihuahua Who Requires 'Extreme Care' Prepares Owner for Motherhood

Some people say that owning a dog is a great preparation for parenthood; Serena Hodson couldn't agree more because looking after her senior dog is similar to caring for a baby.

The 24-year-old's nightly routine with her 13-year-old dog Madi has recently gone viral on TikTok and racked up more than 2 million views. The footage (@thestadlerfam) shows Hodson sleeping with Madi next to her in a baby bassinet. The Chihuahua then wakes her up by barking multiple times during the early hours.

"Madi is a very special dog and requires a lot more than most dogs. Some people may say it's extreme that I tend to her needs so often, but I would do anything to make her more comfortable and happy," Hodson told Newsweek.

During the video shared on April 5, Madi wakes Hodson up at 12:30 a.m., 2:45 a.m., and 4:15 a.m. Each time, her doting owner cuddles her. At one point, she puts the tiny white dog underneath her jumper for warmth before letting her sleep on top of the bed.

The video captioned, "She's preparing me to be the best mother in the future," has over 111,000 likes.

Johns Hopkins Medicine says that the average baby wakes only for feedings every few hours during the night. Hodson said that Madi is taken to the toilet outside before going to bed, and she is crate-trained, meaning she can hold it in the night.

"Madi sleeps in her bassinet by my bed because she loves to be near me when I sleep," Hodson told Newsweek. "As a senior Chihuahua, she is very needy and requires a lot of love and attention day and night; and I give it to her because she deserves the world!

"Most nights aren't as extreme as the video, but she will bark and let me know if she needs extra loving throughout the night.

"A lot of people don't understand the extreme care it takes to care for a senior Chihuahua," Hodson said.

At the time of writing, the video has received over 930 comments. One user wrote: "You're gonna adapt to motherhood so well."

"My senior Chihuahua does this sometimes and I do just like you did, just cuddle [because] that's all she wants when she wakes me like that," posted another.

A third commenter added: "As a dog owner, no one prepared me for the multiple interruptions during the night. in retrospect I feel naive, but it's worth it. I'm happy to see others out there going through the same thing."

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