‘Dog the Bounty Hunter’ Goes Official With New Girlfriend Francie Frane, and Fans Weigh In

Duane “Dog” Chapman‘s fans have welcomed the news of his new girlfriend, Francie Frane, with open arms. The Dog the Bounty Hunter star took the relationship public on Sunday. Chapman started dating Frane less than a year after the death of his late wife, Beth Chapman.

Chapman shared photos of himself with Frane, a 51-year-old Colorado, in The U.S. Sun. His daughter, Lyssa Chapman and family friend Rainy Robinson said they are happy for the new couple. They have been dating for “a few months” and first met when Chapman called Frane’s husband Bob to do yard work at his Colorado home. Sadly, Frane had to tell Dog her husband died several months ago.

Chapman and Frane continued talking over the phone, helping each other deal with their sadness after the death of their spouses, Lyssa told The Sun. “They are both so happy together and they are good for each other,” she said.

“Francie has been very respectful to all the kids – and to Beth’s memory – and my dad is the same way with Bob and their children,” Lyssa, who was known as “Baby Lyssa” on Dog the Bounty Hunter. “They go to church three times a week and dad is trying to give up smoking – she is a good woman for my dad. He’s the happiest I’ve seen him in a long time – he’s so in love and wants to spend the rest of his life with Francie.”

‘Let Him Love and Be Loved’

“They are both lost their spouses to cancer so they know what it’s like to go through that and they are helping each other through it,” Lyssa continued. “But at the same time they are being very respectful of each other’s grieving process and they’re not trying to replace each other’s partner. Beth would approve – I honestly believe that Beth sent Francie for my dad – I feel like Beth and Bob are up there watching down over them.”

‘Happy for You’

If Chapman and Fane started dating “a few months” ago, it means they began dating while the drama with Moon Angell, a friend of Beth’s, played out. Lyssa and Beth’s daughter Cecily were vocal in their disapproval of Angell’s relationship with Chapman, which led to a brief estrangement between Chapman and his children.

The situation came to a head when Chapman appeared on The Dr. Oz Show in February and “proposed” marriage to Angell. She declined, just as Chapman hoped, to prove their relationship was not romantic. The Sun reports Chapman and Angell “split up several weeks ago.”

‘If the Family Approves, the Dog Pound Approves’

“I saw Dog go through a lot of stuff for the last two years – it was very difficult,” Robinson, a close friend of Beth’s who was featured on Dog’s Most Wanted, told The Sun. “He walked Beth right to the edge of life and did everything he was supposed to do.”

‘He Was Sent Someone Who Understands’

Lyssa said her father “made mistakes” and was grieving when he was with Angell, so she had to speak out.

“He was grieving when he was with Moon and he made mistakes – I didn’t want to hurt him by speaking out about it but I felt I had no choice,” Lyssa said. “He accepts that and realizes now that I only wanted the best for him. This relationship is completely different – we are all behind it.”

‘Very Excited to Hear This’

Beth died in June 2019 at age 51 after a battle with throat and lung cancers. Her health battle was chronicled on Dog’s Most Wanted, which aired on WGN America last fall. 

‘Good for Dog’

“I spoke to Dog and I have never heard him this happy, he was crying happy. Then I spoke to her and she was the same crying about how much she cares about him,” Robinson told The Sun. “I think she is somebody that Beth would have picked. I’m happy because he deserves to be loved and I want him to spend the remainder of his life happy.”

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