Angela Bertollo faced court on Friday charged with animal cruelty, entering a building with the intent to commit an indictable offence and assault occasioning bodily harm.

John Paul Bertollo was charged with entering building with intent.

The attack occurred in April this year, when the couple went to a woman's house where Mrs Bertollo started the physical attack.

As the victims dog was barking furiously, Mrs Bertollo struck out and kicked it in the head before continuing. Mr Bertollo stood and watched, doing nothing to stop his wife.

The pair's legal representative Olivia Harris handed written submissions to the magistrate, however gave further oral submissions detailing the circumstances leading to the assault.

She explained how Mrs Bertollo claimed to have been subjected to the victim's "mistaken" beliefs she was having an affair with her husband over the course of three years, leading to a "deterioration" of her mental health.

The final straw, the court heard, was a comment posted on Mrs Bertollo's Facebook page.

"In respect of context for the offending, the caveat is that these submissions are not meant as an excuse for the offending," Ms Harris said. Magistrate Joy Boulos agreed it was inexcusable and said it was "an abhorrent, ugly set of facts."

"You could've taken out an AVO, called the police, but you didn't. You took the law into your own hands," she said to Mrs Bertollo.

The court heard the victim impact statement outlined the woman had a split lip, and needed anti-anxiety medication for her dog.

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While saying prison was the only option, magistrate Boulos agreed with Mrs Harris that it would be best served in the community, based on the fact Mrs Bertollo had a completely unblemished record with low prospects of re-offending.

For Mr Bertollo's part, character references were not taken into consideration by magistrate Boulos due to his failure to disclose the charges to the writers.

Mrs Bertollo's received an Intensive Corrections Order for two and a half years with 400 hours of community service.

Mr Bertollo also received an Intensive Corrections Order for 18 months with 200 hours of community service.

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