Barking at the Knot

Understanding the hidden history of animal services

The Arsenic Club: Blackmail and Horse Poisoners, Part three

The conclusion of the animal cruelty case revolving around a gang of blackmailers and horse poisoners called “The Arsenic Club.”

Audrey Lodato

February 7, 2026

1910s

animal control, Animal control investigations, Animal Cruelty, Animal sheltering, Animal Welfare, animals, Barking at the Knot, Blackmail, Crime, dogs, Extortion, gangs, history, horse poisoning, horses, New York City, newspapers, pets, Rabies, Sing Sing, the humane movement
The Arsenic Club: Blackmail and Horse Poisoners, Part 1

What did early cruelty investigations look like? Here’s one: A gang of horse poisoners going by the name The Arsenic Club set a reign of terror on the east side of Manhattan in 1909, killing more than 500 horses in just three months.

Audrey Lodato

January 19, 2026

1900s, 1910s, Animal Welfare

animal control, Animal Welfare, animals, Arsenic Club, ASPCA, Blackmail, Crime, Cruelty Investigation, Delivery Drivers History, dogs, East Side, Gilded Age, history, Horse Poisoners, horses, Humane Movement, hydrophobia, Manhattan, New York City, New York City Animal History, NYPD, pets, Poisoning, Police, Rabies, Sheffield Dairy, Star Ice Cream, The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, The Apple Gang, The Arsenic Club, True Crime, writing