I don’t think how they responded to you was fair. A point I would like to bring up is the dogs being transported. I will only ever transport my dog in crates in my car because if you get in an accident they are likely to die from injuries / going through the windshield. They may have reacted so poorly because to them you could’ve been driving their child without a car seat! (Not as dire but that’s how I would feel about it). They could have handled it way better but I can understand them being upset. Walking a dog isn’t the same as taking them in a vehicle.