Protesters and dog rescue operations from Wisconsin and surrounding States were in Thorp Wednesday for a dog auction.

Local Humane Societies and dog rescue operations say many of the dogs being sold at the auction are raised by mass breeders, also known as puppy mills.

Humane Societies and dog rescuers say the conditions many of these dogs are raised in are cruel, and it shows. The Clark County Humane Society says a large number of the dogs are sold with serious medical or behavioral problems.

No cameras are allowed inside these public auctions, we were inside, as the dogs were brought up to the podium one at a time, by breed, and bid on.

After the auction a number of people from dog rescue operations who purchase the dogs to give them medical care and find them a loving home showed us various health problems with the dogs, from blindness, to sores on their paws from a lifetime of standing on wire mesh.

They showed how the dogs, many just a few months old, cowered to human contact. They showed us how fearful they were as rescuers say many of their paws touched grass and solid ground for the first time.

Wednesday, about 150 dogs were sold. It seems a majority were sold to rescue operations. But some protesters say even buying the dogs to rescue them just encourages these auctions to continue, and adds to the problem.

They all say what's needed is tougher State Laws.

Thursday on NewsChannel 7, we’ll take a closer look at the dog auction, speak to those on both sides of this issue, and to a State lawmaker looking to end the problem.