I wondered where else I heard this expression before, and two scenes came to my mind. in a movie or a tv drama.
First, a young husband came home and he greeted his wife with "Hi, cutie...." and the socond one was a young father who smiled at his little girl and he said to her "Hi, cutie, daddy is here!
Next day, I asked my American friend if those secenes are common. She said, " Not really" but "Hi, cutie to dogs are very common. My American friend was right. It was only half an hour later, I encountered one incident in which one lady talked to one small dog,"Hi, cutie" when everyone was waiting for their turn for the next teller.