Heartbreaking act of Gene Hackman’s dogs

The incredible act of loyalty by Gene Hackman’s two dogs have been revealed by authorities as the man who found the bodies of the Oscar winner and his wife called it the “worst day” of his life.

Heartbreaking details of the final act of loyalty shown to Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa by their dogs even after the couple’s death have been revealed.

As emergency responders arrived at the actor’s home after receiving a 911 call from a maintenance worker, they were met by the couple’s German Shepherd, Bear, and Akita-shepherd mix, Nikita.

They ran up to first responders, barking frantically before running off.

Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa with two of their dogs. Picture: Supplied

Initially, authorities believed the dogs were playing, but it was soon revealed that they were actually trying to lead paramedics to the couple’s bodies in their final act of loyalty to their owners.

The team had already found the body of 65-year-old Arakawa in the bathroom of the Santa Fe mansion but despite a 30-minute search of the property, they were unable to find the 95-year-old Oscar winner.

Thanks to the help of his dogs, Hackman’s body was located in the mud room at the far end of the sprawling, 9000-square-foot home.

Betsy Arakawa with Zinna who was found dead in her crate. Picture: Supplied

Santa Fe Fire Chief Brian Moya told USA Today: “They realised (the dog) was trying to say, ‘Hey, come over here! Come over here!’”

After leading the team to him, one of the dogs sat beside Hackman’s body.

Nikita was “skittish because of all the commotion” and refused to leave the sides of both of her owners, authorities said.

Both dogs who are now in a boarding facility until the couple’s wills are read and they can be rehomed are said to be “healthy”.

The entrance to the Santa Fe Summit neighbourhood where late US actor Gene Hackman lived with wife Betsy Arakawa and the couple’s three dogs. Picture: AFP

The couple’s third dog Zinna was found dead in a crate in the bathroom near the pianist’s body in a “mummified state”, according to police.

The 12-year-old Australian Kelpie mix had undergone a veterinary procedure in the days before Arakawa’s death but it is not known what killed the dog.

Hackman’s wife was found to have died seven days before the actor on February 11 from a rare rodent disease called hantavirus pulmonary syndrome.

Hantavirus spreads when exposed to rodents’ urine, droppings, and saliva, according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

Gene Hackman pictured in 1996 with wife Betsy Arakawa and daughters Leslie and Elizabeth. The two women revealed they had not spoken to their father in “months”. Picture: Supplied

Hackman, who was suffering from advanced Alzheimer’s, was then alone in the house for days.

It is possible that he did not know of his wife’s body in the bathroom.

He then died on February 18 when the last signal from the actor’s pacemaker was recorded.

The medical examiner ruled his cause of death as hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiac disease and noted that his Alzheimer’s will have played a “significant” role in his death.

He tested negative for hantavirus, Chief Medical Investigator Dr. Heather Jarrell revealed.

No one knew of the couple’s fates until February 26 when a neighbourhood caretaker called 911 after finding them unresponsive at the property.

Investigators are awaiting mobile phone records from the couple’s phones though it is “very unlikely” they will bring anything to light that authorities do not already know, Sheriff Adan Mendoza said in an update.

Gene Hackman and Marisa Tomei with their Oscars in 1993. Picture: AFP

The couple was extremely private in their final years, living in an exclusive gated community.

Hackman is survived by two daughters and a son from a previous marriage.

CONTRACTOR WHO FOUND BODIES SPEAKS OUT

It comes as the contractor who found Hackman and Arakawa’s decomposing bodies last month described the time he made the chilling discovery as “one of the worst days of my life.”

Jesse Kesler, 52, who worked as Hackman’s contractor and handyman for 16 years, was one of the two workers who found the couple and one of their beloved dogs dead on February 26 - and has spent the last few weeks agonising over whether he could have saved them.

“I wish I’d gone in quicker … I might have been able to save Gene or the dog,” Kessler told the DailyMail.

“To be honest, it was awful. It was one of the worst days of my life, and I’ve had some bad days. To see someone like that …,” he said, his voice breaking.

“I was hoping for a better outcome, that maybe they were out of town and they just didn’t tell anyone, or they got locked in the wine cellar by accident.”

Arakawa was dead for about a week before Hackman, authorities revealed last week.

Originally published as Heartbreaking act of Gene Hackman’s dogs