--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It often happens that a human is more…" description: "\"“It often happens that a human is more humanely related to a cat or dog than to any human being.”\" — Henry David Thoreau" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/359/henry-david-thoreau-20_animal_it-often-happens-that-a-human-is-more-hu_2359462.jpg" --- # It often happens that a human is more humanely related to… ![“It often happens that a human is more humanely related to a cat or dog than to any human being.” quote by Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/359/henry-david-thoreau-20_animal_it-often-happens-that-a-human-is-more-hu_2359462.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/359/henry-david-thoreau-20_animal_it-often-happens-that-a-human-is-more-hu_2359462.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/359/henry-david-thoreau-20_animal_it-often-happens-that-a-human-is-more-hu_2359462.jpg) > ““It often happens that a human is more humanely related to a cat or dog than to any human being.”” [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Animals can provide deeper empathy than humans sometimes **In simple terms:** Pets may be more compassionate than people Key Takeaway Value animal companionship for emotional support Themes companionship empathy nature Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical observational When to use this quote - therapy animal programs - adopting pets - volunteering at shelters - reflecting on human relationships Key Concepts anthropomorphism social comparison human‑animal bond Questions to Reflect On - Why might a pet feel more understanding? - How can we foster human empathy similar to that with animals? A Different Perspective Not all humans are unkind; context matters for relationships ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Dog Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dog-human-787982/) [Human Humanely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-humanely-5771692/) [Humanely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanely-431533/) [Humanely Related](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanely-related-787981/) [Related Cat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/related-cat-787983/) ## Related quotes > [It often happens that a man is more humanely related to a cat or dog than to any human being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/it-often-happens-that-a-man-is-more-humanely-related-to-a-cat-or-dog/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [She had no particular breed in mind, no unusual requirements. Except the special sense of mutual recognition that tells dog and human they have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lloyd-alexander/she-had-no-particular-breed-in-mind-no-unusual-requirements-except/) [Lloyd Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lloyd-alexander/) > [“The relationship between a dog and a human is always complicated. 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She is a person who understand, values…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-satir/over-the-years-i-have-developed-a-picture-of-what-a-human-being/) [Virginia Satir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-satir/) > [“Keep in mind that democracy merely gives power to the people; it does not ensure that power will be used wisely or humanely.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-stark/keep-in-mind-that-democracy-merely-gives-power-to-the-people-it-does/) [Rodney Stark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-stark/) ## More by Henry David Thoreau > [If ever I did a man any goodof course it was something exceptional and insignificant compared with the good or evil which I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/if-ever-i-did-a-man-any-goodof-course-it-was-something-exceptional/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“Men say they know many things; But lo! they have taken wings, — The arts and sciences, And a thousand appliances; The wind that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/men-say-they-know-many-things-but-lo-they-have-taken-wings-the-arts/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I am not afraid of praise, for I have practiced it on myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-am-not-afraid-of-praise-for-i-have-practiced-it-on-myself/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“All voting is a sort of gaming, like checkers or back gammon, with a slight moral tinge to it, a playing with right and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/all-voting-is-a-sort-of-gaming-like-checkers-or-back-gammon-with-a/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“This spending of the best part of one's life earning money in order to enjoy a questionable liberty during the least valuable part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/this-spending-of-the-best-part-of-one-s-life-earning-money-in-order/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [As for doing good; that is one of the professions which is full. 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He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. 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It makes no sense. None whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/animal-rights-without-veganism-is-like-human-rights-with-slavery-it/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) [Browse all 13,456 Animal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It often happens that a human is more humanely related to a cat or dog than to any human being.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Henry David Thoreau" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/it-often-happens-that-a-human-is-more-humanely-related-to-a-cat-or/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Animal" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/it-often-happens-that-a-human-is-more-humanely-related-to-a-cat-or/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/359/henry-david-thoreau-20_animal_it-often-happens-that-a-human-is-more-hu_2359462.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/359/henry-david-thoreau-20_animal_it-often-happens-that-a-human-is-more-hu_2359462.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/359/henry-david-thoreau-20_animal_it-often-happens-that-a-human-is-more-hu_2359462.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It often happens that a human is more humanely related to a cat or dog than to any human being.” — Henry David Thoreau", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Henry David Thoreau", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“It often happens that a human...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/it-often-happens-that-a-human-is-more-humanely-related-to-a-cat-or/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/it-often-happens-that-a-human-is-more-humanely-related-to-a-cat-or/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```