BOSTON -- Twenty-two dogs, some of which where dead, were found in a car parked at Wal-Mart in Salem, N.H.

Police said that a woman contacted police Wednesday morning and said that she was inside the store on North Broadway when she had a conversation with two women who told her about the animals. The woman waited outside the store until police arrived so that she could identify the women.

The women, one of whom was identified as Amy Moolic, of Dracut, Mass., told police that they were returning from a trip to Maine and that they had a large number of dogs in the vehicle.

Moolic brought officers to her vehicle, where they observed several small dog kennels in the vehicle with three or four dogs in each kennel. Moolic said that the dogs were from a puppy mill in Somerville, Maine, and that she had rescued them.

"(She said) she rescued the dogs from a puppy mill up in Maine. We are working hard to try to confirm that right now," Salem Police Department Capt. Shawn Patten said.

Salem's Animal Control Officer Kelly Demers took custody of the dogs. There were 22 dogs in the vehicle, and three of them were deceased. Moolic will be allowed to retrieve four of the dogs immediately.

Nine of the dogs were being cared for at the Salem Animal Rescue League.

"They are underweight. They need grooming," said Ray Denis, of the Salem Animal Rescue League. "They are infested with fleas. The dogs need some medical care."

Officials said Moolic became very agitated and belligerent in the parking lot of the store, creating a disturbance and was subsequently taken into custody for being a disorderly person and for interfering with a police officer.

Moolic was released on $500 cash bail and is scheduled to appear in Salem District Court on Feb. 25.