Gene Hackman's 2 Surviving Dogs Are Healthy and Safe, Boarder Says

New York Times

05-03-2025

Even those who knew very little about the lives of the retired actor Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, still knew that they loved their dogs.
Mr. Hackman and Ms. Arakawa, who were found dead last week in their home, had rarely been seen in public in recent years, but when they were spotted in their neighborhood they were often walking their dogs or driving with them in the back. Neighbors said the couple brightened up when they met a fellow dog lover.
So, amid the shock of their deaths, people who knew the couple have also been mourning that one of their three dogs was found dead in a crate in the home.
'Betsy and Gene were incredible dog parents,' Joey Padilla, the owner of Santa Fe Tails, which provides dog day care, training and boarding, said in a statement. 'They knew the importance of good training, a healthy diet and socialization. There was nothing they wouldn't do for the well-being of their dogs.'
Mr. Padilla said the dog that died was named Zinna and was an Australian Kelpie mix, a breed of dogs known for their loyalty. Zinna was once a returned shelter dog, Mr. Padilla said, but had turned into an 'incredible companion under Betsy's hand.'
Two other dogs, both German shepherds, were found alive on the property.
The surviving dogs, Bear and Nikita, are 'healthy and receiving the best care in a familiar environment,' Mr. Padilla said. He said he was waiting to hear from Ms. Arakawa's lawyer about what to do with them.
Investigators with the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office had previously said that all three dogs were German shepherds.
'Our deputies don't deal with dogs on a daily basis,' said Denise Womack-Avila, a spokeswoman for the office. 'I could see how they could have assumed it was just another German shepherd,' she said about Zinna, the dog that died.
Ms. Womack-Avila said it was unclear how long Zinna was dead before the couple was discovered at their home on Feb. 26. Data from Mr. Hackman's pacemaker last showed activity on Feb. 17, meaning the couple could have been dead for as long as nine days before they were found. It is also not clear whether Zinna, found in the crate, had access to any food or water.
How long dogs can survive without sustenance depends on their age, health and other factors, but veterinarians say that they generally cannot survive more than three days without water and five days without food.
Officials have said that the two surviving dogs had access to the property's yard through a back door that either was open or had a dog door.
There are still few answers as to how the couple may have died. Mr. Hackman, 95, was found on the floor of the home's mudroom, near his cane, while Ms. Arakawa, 65, was found on the bathroom floor, beside a counter with pills scattered about.
The police recovered several common medications from the home, including Tylenol, heart medication and thyroid medication. Experts have said that it would be possible, but not typical or easy, to overdose on some of those medications.
Mr. Hackman and Ms. Arakawa were famously private, living at the end of a cul-de-sac in a gated community known as Santa Fe Summit, east of the city.
The police have said that there was no security camera footage from inside or outside the home. They would be reviewing data from two cellphones at the house, they said, and trying to determine when someone last had contact with the couple. The key, the police said, may be in toxicology results from the bodies, which are pending.
Sheriff Adan Mendoza said the police had essentially ruled out carbon monoxide, given that both bodies tested negative for the potentially lethal gas.