SHERMAN TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — Authorities say a dog attacked and killed a 4-year-old girl and injured the child’s mother at a home in southwestern Michigan.

The St. Joseph County sheriff’s department in Michigan says the girl’s mother tried to protect her daughter when the Doberman or Doberman mix attacked Sunday. The Sherman Township family had only just acquired the dog. The mother was hospitalized with injuries to her head and hands.

Names of those involved weren’t immediately released. The attack is under investigation and the dog was taken away by animal control.