A couple who are preparing to turn off their seriously ill baby's life support machine are drawing comfort from their pet dogs, who refuse to leave their daughter's bedside.

Nora Hall suffered a massive stroke at just four months old and has been in a medically induced coma in a Minneapolis children's hospital since early April.

As parents Mary and John Hall spent time with their daughter before taking the heartbreaking step of removing her life support, Mary told how their two devoted eight-year-old Basset Hounds have been allowed into the hospital.

"My five month old daughter had a stroke on April 6," Mary wrote on Facebook.

"We have been at Children's Hospital in Minneapolis since then.

"She is not going to survive.

"They allowed us to have our bassets here in the last couple of days because they are so attached to her."

Baby Nora risks another stroke or organ failure that would be likely to kill her if she is kept on life support, the family said.

Mary said the dogs are "very stressed and sad" and the couple must decide whether to give the pets to her brother "in case they get more stressed seeing everyone upset, or if I should let them stay in the room for when she passes, so they aren't left wondering where she is when we go home."

After seeking advice from the Wonderful World of Basset Hounds Facebook group, the couple decided to let the dogs stay with their daughter.