A man hit his girlfriend with a spade while she fed her son breakfast before throwing bags of dog poo at her, a court has heard.
Jake Shaw, 30, then suffocated Kirsty Burrows with a pillow in a terrifying ordeal that ended when her dog intervened to defend the woman, allowing her to escape.
Liverpool Crown Court heard Shaw and Ms Burrows had been in an "on-off relationship" for around eight years after meeting via a dating website, reports the Liverpool Echo.
Eve Salter, prosecuting, said the couple had argued about their puppies on February 20 last year and that night Ms Burrows slept in her son's room as she "feared what the defendant may do".
The following morning, while Ms Burrows was giving her son breakfast in the dining room of her home in St Helens, Merseyside, Shaw suddenly struck her over the head with a spade.
Ms Burrows sought to "shield herself" with her arms and legs, where further blows with the weapon landed.
When she tried to leave so she could take her children to school, the thug refused to give Ms Burrows her car keys until she picked up bags of dog poo in front of the driveway.
And when she did so, Shaw "proceeded to throw the bags of faeces at her", the court heard.
Ms Burrows suffered swelling to the back of her head and bruises to her arms and legs as a result of the assault.
Then, at 9pm the same day, the woman was upstairs in bed when Shaw knocked at the front door and asked if he could stay the night.
She agreed on the condition that her "intoxicated" boyfriend slept on the sofa but, around 20 minutes later, Shaw entered her bedroom and began subjecting her to a second assault, the court heard.
Shaw sat on her legs "so she could not move" before hitting her twice in the chest and once to her left side, causing bruising. Further punches then connected with the back of her head before he sat on her again and suffocated her by placing a pillow over her face.
Shaw then placed both of his hands over Ms Burrows' face, leaving her "unable to breathe". Ms Burrows punched him back and managed to break free, after which her assailant told her: "I'm going to get you done for assault."
When the victim tried to leave for her mum's house, he took hold of her son's school uniform "in an attempt to stop them". Shaw then picked up a "combat knife" and stated: "If you leave me, I'm going to kill myself."
He grabbed Ms Burrows once more, sparking her dog to "launch" itself at him in a bid to protect her. This resulted in the blade making contact with his girlfriend, causing a cut and bruising.
Shaw then grabbed the pet by the throat, pushed her to the floor and stamped on her neck. The complainant was able to escape to her mother's while he was fighting with the dog.
In a statement that was read out to the court on her behalf, Ms Burrows described how she had since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and suffers from panic attacks and nightmares.
She stated that she has been left "feeling worthless", adding: "I feel like my life is rubbish at the moment.
"I don't feel like me. I feel like what happened to me is never going to leave me."
Shaw has five previous convictions for eight offences, including being jailed for 18 weeks in 2019 for battery against Ms Burrows.
His defence counsel told the court that he denies having used the spade during his attack, but "accepts his actions were not acceptable and takes responsibility for those actions".
He has since moved away from the area and "sustained from taking any alcohol whatsoever". The defendant also suffers from rheumatoid arthritis.
Shaw - now of Bankfield Court in Mirfield, West Yorkshire - admitted two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
He was jailed for 10 months and handed a five-year restraining order preventing him from contacting Ms Burrows.
Sentencing, Recorder Eric Lamb said: "Offences of domestic violence involve a breach of the trust of an intimate relationship. I have concluded that appropriate punishment can only be achieved by an immediate term of custody."
