The retired Micky Ward -- who was portrayed by Mark Wahberg in "The Fighter" -- is being hospitalized in Massachusetts after he was attacked by a stray dog ... TMZ has learned. Ward's rep tells TMZ ..

Prior to his retirement from boxing in 2003, Micky Ward had spent close to twenty years battling one tough opponent after another. His three epic brawls with Arturo Gatti will forever be a part of ...