Watenpaugh is accused of repeatedly beating his former partner while they were in a relationship.
During one attack, the woman left the apartment and came home later to find her boyfriend had left and her beloved pet, called Bear, was missing.
The couple briefly reconciled last week and police claim Watenpaugh cooked the woman a meal.
Investigators say he later sent her a text message asking her how her dog had tasted.
Sgt Todd Cogle said: “It set all of us back when we actually read the text messages about the incident.
“You can really get the sense from reviewing the text messages that the relationship was extremely toxic. It was a pressure cooker of anger and resentment.”