A necropsy report has revealed that dehydration and starvation likely led to the death of one of actor Gene Hackman and his wife’s dogs, found alongside the deceased couple in their New Mexico home.
The Santa Fe County animal control agency’s report, obtained by The Associated Press, details partial mummification of the dog and notes the absence of signs indicating infectious disease, trauma, or poisoning.
While severe decomposition may have obscured changes to the dog’s organs, its stomach contained only small amounts of hair and bile.
The dog, a kelpie mix named Zinna, was one of three owned by the couple. Two other dogs survived.
Zinna was discovered deceased in a crate inside a bathroom closet, near the body of Hackman’s wife, Betsy Arakawa.
Authorities confirmed last week that Hackman died from heart disease complicated by Alzheimer’s disease.
His death followed that of his wife, who succumbed to hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a rare rodent-borne illness, approximately a week earlier. Hackman, in the advanced stages of Alzheimer’s, may have been unaware of his wife’s passing, medical examiners said.
Hackman was found in the home’s entryway, while Arakawa was located in a bathroom. Similar to the dog, their bodies exhibited decomposition and some mummification, a result of body type and the arid climate of Santa Fe, situated at an elevation of nearly 7,200 feet.
Zinnia went from being a returned shelter dog to an incredible companion that was always at Arakawa’s side, said Joey Padilla, owner of the Santa Fe Tails pet care facility that was involved in the surviving dogs’ care.
Arakawa, born in Hawaii, studied as a concert pianist, attended the University of Southern California and met Hackman in the mid-1980s while working at a California gym.
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Hackman, a Hollywood icon, won two Oscars during a storied career in films including The French Connection, Hoosiers and Superman from the 1960s until his retirement in the early 2000s.
The pair led a private life after moving to Santa Fe decades ago. A representative for the couple’s estate has cited that privacy in seeking to block the public release of autopsy and investigative reports related to their deaths, especially photographs and video.
It will be up to a state district judge to consider that request.
