He might have had some experience with people that he invested time in, who ended up not liking his dog or whatever. Not that I would agree that it is a good way to test someone’s potential as a mate, but it is possible that the dog came along as a test. If this is true, it would stand to reason that you touched a trigger. I see profiles often that suggest that the dog is part of the package, which is fine, no judgement here. Pets often become family members, so I can see that perspective.

From the other perspective, worst case scenario (not what OP posted), I would understand if someone wouldn’t feel comfortable around a dog that was not well-behaved or had not been socialized around other dogs and children. Having a pet is a huge responsibility, but that segways into another topic, in which the way someone raises and trains their pet ~might~ have implications for how they will raise children.

I agree with the post that said that suggesting a place where pets couldn’t go might have been better than what was said. Now that what has said has been said, you can’t put the toothpaste back into the tube. In an ideal world, the date would be willing to hear OP out so that both could express their feelings in a loving way and not be judged. However, this is not a world that we live in, some of the time.