“Gene Hackman ‘s two dogs, who endured weeks of hell in a house of death, have began their road to recovery as the trainer who took them in reveals their fate.”, — write: www.dailymail.co.uk
But 7-year-old German Shepherd Bear and Nikita, an Akita-shepherd mix, have lost each other’s companionship as they have been split up following their ordeal.
Joey Padilla, the owner of Santa Fe Tails who’d been caring for the pooches at his doggie daycare center since last month’s tragic deaths of the Oscar-winning actor, his wife and a third dog, told DailyMail.com Sunday that he just got back from dropping off one of the dogs out of state and said the other pet has been moved to a local home.
He said he was not allowed to share where they ended up, only that they were placed in separate homes.
Padilla later issued a statement noting that the couple’s estate lawyer had signed off on the decision.
‘It is with great joy that, with the consent of the estate attorney, I and my staff at Santa Fe Tails have successfully found homes for the Hackmans’ surviving dogs, Bear and Nikita,’ he wrote.
‘We went through stringent efforts to ensure the best homes were found and the dogs have already begun settling into their new lives.
‘We are all thankful for the concern and well wishes Bear and Nikita have received during their transition,’ he added.
‘It is our hope that everyone continues to wish them the best and honor their privacy so they can continue to heal.’
Padilla, 52, had forged a close bond over the years with the legendary actor and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, who took exceptional care of their three dogs, using his training and daycare services as well as those of an animal chiropractor who’d give them adjustments every few weeks.
‘Gene and Betsy had so much love for her dogs,’ he told DailyMail.com on Thursday when the animals were still staying at his facility.
‘There was nothing they would not do for those dogs.’
The couple also provided financial support at Santa Fe Tails and invested in The Alley, a bowling center Padilla owns elsewhere in town.
‘I wouldn’t have what I have without them,’ he told DailyMail.com.
On February 26, Padilla got called to the house after the bodies of Hackman, 95, and Arakawa, 65, had been found in their home, along with Zinna, a 12-year-old Australian Kelpie mixed breed.
‘That was actually the first time I’d been to their home,’ Padilla said. ‘It’s absolutely devastating, absolutely devastating.’
Zinna, who had recently undergone a medical procedure, was found dead in a crate in the bathroom, the same room where Arakawa was found.
Bear and Nikita were running free and survived.
Authorities, after finding Arakawa, were unable to immediately locate Hackman. During their search one of the dogs constantly ran up to them barking and running off, leading them to his body in the mudroom.
Padilla explained that when he arrived, Bear had already been grabbed by Santa Fe County Animal Control. However, Nikita was proving elusive.
‘There were officers everything, and there was obviously a lot of chaos in Nikita’s mind,’ Padilla told DailyMail.com.
‘She was running around the property, scared. She didn’t know what to do. I tried luring her with treats, but it didn’t work.’
He left a cage with a trap and, overnight, Nikita stepped inside. Padilla grabbed her the next morning and took both her and Bear to Santa Fe Tails.
‘They’re adjusting to their new life,’ Padilla said on Thursday when the dogs were still at the center.
Padilla said that over the past few weeks, dog lovers from across the nation have offered to take them in, as have locals.
He clarified at the time that he was holding off a decision as he waited to hear back from a representative for the Hackman and Arakawa on whether the couple had expressed their wishes for the animals.
It was unclear whether family members expressed a desire to take them in.
If the family wasn’t interested, Padilla was thinking a local family might be preferable given that’s where Hackman and Arakawa had chosen to make their home.
‘I’ve had people from all over the country reach out,’ he said. ‘But I think we would go locally and quietly find these dogs homes with whoever is the best fit.’
The State Department of Agriculture’s veterinary lab has determined that Zinna died from dehydration and starvation, The Associated Press reported on Saturday.
Arakawa had picked up the dog from a Santa Fe veterinarian on February 9, which could explain why the animal was found inside the encasement.
Arakawa was found to have died just two days later, on February 11, while Hackman died on February 18, suffering advanced Alzheimer’s and likely unaware that she was gone.
Their deaths were ruled to be due to natural causes.
Arakawa was an apparent victim of the rodent-borne hantavirus, a rare disease that produces flu-like symptoms and has a 38 percent death rate.
The Oscar-winning actor is believed to have died from heart disease and showed evidence of advanced Alzheimer’s disease.
Both were found decomposed and partially mummified.
Hackman shared three children with his first wife Faye Maltese. He and Arakawa, a classical pianist, had been married for the last three decades.
The gruff-but-beloved Hackman was among the finest actors of his generation, appearing as villains, heroes and antiheroes in dozens of dramas, comedies and action films from the 1960s until his retirement in the early 2000s.
He was a five-time Oscar nominee who won for his roles in The French Connection in 1972 and Unforgiven two decades later.
Hackman met Arakawa, who grew up in Hawaii, when she was working part-time at a California gym in the mid-1980s.
They soon moved in together, and by the end of the decade had decamped to Santa Fe.
A naturally private man, Hackman was labeled a recluse as he remained out of the public eye for years on end following his retirement from the movie industry. He retired from acting in 2004.