A man was seen on High Street, Goldthorpe, beating the dog and hitting it with a metal lead at around 10.30am on Wednesday.
Several people knocked on the door of Goldthorpe Police Station on Barnsley Road to report the incident, and a 31-year-old man was detained by members of the South East neighbourhood policing team and a response team from Wombwell.
The suspect was taken to Barnsley Police Station is in custody charged with animal cruelty.
The dog was tended to by two members of the public and is now being cared for.
