Danny Trejo's Badass Chihuahua Reminded Him of Classic Character

Danny Trejo's saying farewell to his beloved Chihuahua Dixie ... a mini-yet-mighty dog that certainly made fans laugh, but Danny tells TMZ she also struck fear into the hearts of his other pets.

Dixie died this week at 16, and Danny's obviously heartbroken -- but he told us he's also full of joy for the smiles and laughs the tough-as-nails pooch provided by scaring the hell out of his pit bulls and Rottweilers. As he puts it, Dixie ran his house!

DT says fans used to be baffled when they saw him with Dixie ... most assuming he would be holding back two massive, brutish K-9s, but Dixie was his baby and always slept with Dad.

Of all the badasses the icon has played, Danny says Dixie most reminded him of Isador "Machete" Cortez -- she could be sweet, but stay the hell outta her way … or else.

Danny broke the news of Dixie's death on IG, writing ... "Hold your babies tight for me, please. Today I lost my little Dixie Wixie."

DT has always loved dogs ... in fact, he tells us when he was released from prison, the first thing that happened was a random dog on the street jumped into his arms and gave him kisses ... and he hopes talking about Dixie inspires someone to go adopt.

Dixie was cremated, and the family plans on having a small gathering to honor her. Yes, the rotties and pit bulls are invited, too.