diff --git a/changelogs/fragments/58791-docker-errors.yml b/changelogs/fragments/58791-docker-errors.yml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..226c8f1730e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/changelogs/fragments/58791-docker-errors.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+bugfixes:
+- "docker_image - validate ``tag`` option value."
+- "docker_* modules - behave better when requests errors are not caught by docker-py."
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/lib/ansible/module_utils/docker/common.py b/lib/ansible/module_utils/docker/common.py
index f530bcc2556..ded0316a582 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/module_utils/docker/common.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/module_utils/docker/common.py
@@ -74,6 +74,16 @@ except ImportError:
     HAS_DOCKER_SSLADAPTER = False
 
 
+try:
+    from request.exceptions import RequestException
+except ImportError:
+    # Either docker-py is no longer using requests, or docker-py isn't around either,
+    # or docker-py's dependency requests is missing. In any case, define an exception
+    # class RequestException so that our code doesn't break.
+    class RequestException(Exception):
+        pass
+
+
 DEFAULT_DOCKER_HOST = 'unix://var/run/docker.sock'
 DEFAULT_TLS = False
 DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY = False
@@ -123,12 +133,21 @@ if not HAS_DOCKER_PY:
 
 
 def is_image_name_id(name):
-    """Checks whether the given image name is in fact an image ID (hash)."""
+    """Check whether the given image name is in fact an image ID (hash)."""
     if re.match('^sha256:[0-9a-fA-F]{64}$', name):
         return True
     return False
 
 
+def is_valid_tag(tag, allow_empty=False):
+    """Check whether the given string is a valid docker tag name."""
+    if not tag:
+        return allow_empty
+    # See here ("Extended description") for a definition what tags can be:
+    # https://docs.docker.com/engine/reference/commandline/tag/
+    return bool(re.match('^[a-zA-Z0-9_][a-zA-Z0-9_.-]{0,127}$', tag))
+
+
 def sanitize_result(data):
     """Sanitize data object for return to Ansible.
 
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_compose.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_compose.py
index c3b14d10024..4635bcc4e2c 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_compose.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_compose.py
@@ -451,7 +451,7 @@ try:
     import yaml
     HAS_YAML = True
     HAS_YAML_EXC = None
-except ImportError as exc:
+except ImportError as dummy:
     HAS_YAML = False
     HAS_YAML_EXC = traceback.format_exc()
 
@@ -470,12 +470,16 @@ try:
     HAS_COMPOSE = True
     HAS_COMPOSE_EXC = None
     MINIMUM_COMPOSE_VERSION = '1.7.0'
-except ImportError as exc:
+except ImportError as dummy:
     HAS_COMPOSE = False
     HAS_COMPOSE_EXC = traceback.format_exc()
     DEFAULT_TIMEOUT = 10
 
-from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import AnsibleDockerClient, DockerBaseClass
+from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
+    AnsibleDockerClient,
+    DockerBaseClass,
+    RequestException,
+)
 
 
 AUTH_PARAM_MAPPING = {
@@ -1101,6 +1105,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**result)
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_config.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_config.py
index 876f96124d4..2ee7cc7b768 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_config.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_config.py
@@ -160,7 +160,12 @@ except ImportError:
     # missing Docker SDK for Python handled in ansible.module_utils.docker.common
     pass
 
-from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import AnsibleDockerClient, DockerBaseClass, compare_generic
+from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
+    AnsibleDockerClient,
+    DockerBaseClass,
+    compare_generic,
+    RequestException,
+)
 from ansible.module_utils._text import to_native, to_bytes
 
 
@@ -291,6 +296,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**results)
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_container.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_container.py
index ad3aeb0e630..d31c98a4660 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_container.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_container.py
@@ -955,6 +955,7 @@ from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
     sanitize_result,
     parse_healthcheck,
     DOCKER_COMMON_ARGS,
+    RequestException,
 )
 from ansible.module_utils.six import string_types
 
@@ -1419,7 +1420,7 @@ class TaskParameters(DockerBaseClass):
                         break
                 except NotFound as e:
                     self.client.fail(
-                        "Cannot inspect the network '{0}' to determine the default IP.".format(net['name']),
+                        "Cannot inspect the network '{0}' to determine the default IP: {1}".format(net['name'], e),
                         exception=traceback.format_exc()
                     )
         return ip
@@ -2651,9 +2652,9 @@ class ContainerManager(DockerBaseClass):
         if not self.check_mode:
             try:
                 if self.parameters.stop_timeout:
-                    response = self.client.restart(container_id, timeout=self.parameters.stop_timeout)
+                    dummy = self.client.restart(container_id, timeout=self.parameters.stop_timeout)
                 else:
-                    response = self.client.restart(container_id)
+                    dummy = self.client.restart(container_id)
             except Exception as exc:
                 self.fail("Error restarting container %s: %s" % (container_id, str(exc)))
         return self._get_container(container_id)
@@ -3029,6 +3030,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**sanitize_result(cm.results))
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_container_info.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_container_info.py
index 59211a622c9..44be2e95231 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_container_info.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_container_info.py
@@ -115,7 +115,10 @@ except ImportError:
     # missing Docker SDK for Python handled in ansible.module_utils.docker.common
     pass
 
-from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import AnsibleDockerClient
+from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
+    AnsibleDockerClient,
+    RequestException,
+)
 
 
 def main():
@@ -139,6 +142,8 @@ def main():
         )
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_host_info.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_host_info.py
index 64ce257b7de..f3bcf796e74 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_host_info.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_host_info.py
@@ -187,7 +187,11 @@ disk_usage:
 
 import traceback
 
-from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import AnsibleDockerClient, DockerBaseClass
+from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
+    AnsibleDockerClient,
+    DockerBaseClass,
+    RequestException,
+)
 from ansible.module_utils._text import to_native
 
 try:
@@ -332,6 +336,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**results)
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_image.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_image.py
index 6a9a672c46d..71e83c9b4a9 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_image.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_image.py
@@ -424,7 +424,12 @@ import traceback
 from distutils.version import LooseVersion
 
 from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
-    docker_version, AnsibleDockerClient, DockerBaseClass, is_image_name_id,
+    docker_version,
+    AnsibleDockerClient,
+    DockerBaseClass,
+    is_image_name_id,
+    is_valid_tag,
+    RequestException,
 )
 from ansible.module_utils._text import to_native
 
@@ -879,6 +884,9 @@ def main():
                            'and will be removed in Ansible 2.11. Please use the'
                            '"tls" and "tls_verify" options instead.')
 
+    if not is_valid_tag(client.module.params['tag'], allow_empty=True):
+        client.fail('"{0}" is not a valid docker tag!'.format(client.module.params['tag']))
+
     build_options = dict(
         container_limits='container_limits',
         dockerfile='dockerfile',
@@ -942,6 +950,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**results)
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_image_info.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_image_info.py
index 773aa188b42..c1027162d5c 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_image_info.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_image_info.py
@@ -163,7 +163,12 @@ except ImportError:
     # missing Docker SDK for Python handled in ansible.module_utils.docker.common
     pass
 
-from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import AnsibleDockerClient, DockerBaseClass, is_image_name_id
+from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
+    AnsibleDockerClient,
+    DockerBaseClass,
+    is_image_name_id,
+    RequestException,
+)
 
 
 class ImageManager(DockerBaseClass):
@@ -247,6 +252,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**results)
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_login.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_login.py
index 60475be9edb..19df546de39 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_login.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_login.py
@@ -138,7 +138,13 @@ except ImportError:
     pass
 
 from ansible.module_utils._text import to_bytes, to_text
-from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import AnsibleDockerClient, DEFAULT_DOCKER_REGISTRY, DockerBaseClass, EMAIL_REGEX
+from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
+    AnsibleDockerClient,
+    DEFAULT_DOCKER_REGISTRY,
+    DockerBaseClass,
+    EMAIL_REGEX,
+    RequestException,
+)
 
 
 class LoginManager(DockerBaseClass):
@@ -331,6 +337,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**results)
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_network.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_network.py
index ad79c24fdec..fbeebd1fe89 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_network.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_network.py
@@ -286,6 +286,7 @@ from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
     docker_version,
     DifferenceTracker,
     clean_dict_booleans_for_docker_api,
+    RequestException,
 )
 
 try:
@@ -688,6 +689,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**cm.results)
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_network_info.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_network_info.py
index 40d02c21c05..ed2963165c0 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_network_info.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_network_info.py
@@ -111,7 +111,10 @@ except ImportError:
     # missing Docker SDK for Python handled in ansible.module_utils.docker.common
     pass
 
-from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import AnsibleDockerClient
+from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
+    AnsibleDockerClient,
+    RequestException,
+)
 
 
 def main():
@@ -135,6 +138,8 @@ def main():
         )
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_node.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_node.py
index 1c2455dbbe8..9ef36fb586b 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_node.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_node.py
@@ -139,6 +139,7 @@ except ImportError:
 
 from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
     DockerBaseClass,
+    RequestException,
 )
 
 from ansible.module_utils._text import to_native
@@ -288,6 +289,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**results)
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_node_info.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_node_info.py
index 38fe2fbc43b..a32545c2fd1 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_node_info.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_node_info.py
@@ -89,10 +89,13 @@ nodes:
 
 import traceback
 
+from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
+    RequestException,
+)
 from ansible.module_utils.docker.swarm import AnsibleDockerSwarmClient
 
 try:
-    from docker.errors import DockerException, APIError, NotFound
+    from docker.errors import DockerException
 except ImportError:
     # missing Docker SDK for Python handled in ansible.module_utils.docker.common
     pass
@@ -147,6 +150,8 @@ def main():
         )
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_prune.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_prune.py
index 902e6fbb515..f088f60c272 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_prune.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_prune.py
@@ -187,7 +187,10 @@ except ImportError:
 
 from distutils.version import LooseVersion
 
-from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import AnsibleDockerClient
+from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
+    AnsibleDockerClient,
+    RequestException,
+)
 
 try:
     from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import docker_version, clean_dict_booleans_for_docker_api
@@ -255,6 +258,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**result)
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_secret.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_secret.py
index 5822a2719d9..2cd32dea37a 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_secret.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_secret.py
@@ -160,7 +160,12 @@ except ImportError:
     # missing Docker SDK for Python handled in ansible.module_utils.docker.common
     pass
 
-from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import AnsibleDockerClient, DockerBaseClass, compare_generic
+from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
+    AnsibleDockerClient,
+    DockerBaseClass,
+    compare_generic,
+    RequestException,
+)
 from ansible.module_utils._text import to_native, to_bytes
 
 
@@ -292,6 +297,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**results)
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm.py
index d6ff74a6400..c91212b5b45 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm.py
@@ -278,7 +278,7 @@ except ImportError:
 from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
     DockerBaseClass,
     DifferenceTracker,
-    LooseVersion,
+    RequestException,
 )
 
 from ansible.module_utils.docker.swarm import AnsibleDockerSwarmClient
@@ -671,6 +671,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**results)
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm_info.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm_info.py
index 8cde9b4576a..dedbb01bdf2 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm_info.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm_info.py
@@ -195,7 +195,7 @@ tasks:
 import traceback
 
 try:
-    from docker.errors import DockerException, APIError, NotFound
+    from docker.errors import DockerException, APIError
 except ImportError:
     # missing Docker SDK for Python handled in ansible.module_utils.docker_common
     pass
@@ -203,7 +203,11 @@ except ImportError:
 from ansible.module_utils._text import to_native
 
 from ansible.module_utils.docker.swarm import AnsibleDockerSwarmClient
-from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import DockerBaseClass, clean_dict_booleans_for_docker_api
+from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
+    DockerBaseClass,
+    clean_dict_booleans_for_docker_api,
+    RequestException,
+)
 
 
 class DockerSwarmManager(DockerBaseClass):
@@ -373,6 +377,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**results)
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm_service.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm_service.py
index 2825c4cf473..08b24df5475 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm_service.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm_service.py
@@ -1051,9 +1051,10 @@ from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
     DifferenceTracker,
     DockerBaseClass,
     convert_duration_to_nanosecond,
-    parse_healthcheck
-
+    parse_healthcheck,
+    RequestException,
 )
+
 from ansible.module_utils.basic import human_to_bytes
 from ansible.module_utils.six import string_types
 from ansible.module_utils._text import to_text
@@ -2813,6 +2814,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**results)
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm_service_info.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm_service_info.py
index 9ec4cb3aeca..76465f30192 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm_service_info.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_swarm_service_info.py
@@ -74,6 +74,10 @@ except ImportError:
     # missing Docker SDK for Python handled in ansible.module_utils.docker.common
     pass
 
+from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
+    RequestException,
+)
+
 from ansible.module_utils.docker.swarm import AnsibleDockerSwarmClient
 
 
@@ -109,6 +113,8 @@ def main():
         )
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_volume.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_volume.py
index 66eade09b70..544bce0e86e 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_volume.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_volume.py
@@ -137,6 +137,7 @@ from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
     DockerBaseClass,
     AnsibleDockerClient,
     DifferenceTracker,
+    RequestException,
 )
 from ansible.module_utils.six import iteritems, text_type
 
@@ -330,6 +331,8 @@ def main():
         client.module.exit_json(**cm.results)
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_volume_info.py b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_volume_info.py
index 3bad1a937cb..75a53dd2096 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_volume_info.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/cloud/docker/docker_volume_info.py
@@ -88,7 +88,10 @@ except ImportError:
     # missing Docker SDK for Python handled in ansible.module_utils.docker.common
     pass
 
-from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import AnsibleDockerClient
+from ansible.module_utils.docker.common import (
+    AnsibleDockerClient,
+    RequestException,
+)
 
 
 def get_existing_volume(client, volume_name):
@@ -122,6 +125,8 @@ def main():
         )
     except DockerException as e:
         client.fail('An unexpected docker error occurred: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
+    except RequestException as e:
+        client.fail('An unexpected requests error occurred when docker-py tried to talk to the docker daemon: {0}'.format(e), exception=traceback.format_exc())
 
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':