--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I had a dog that was sick as often as…" description: "\"If I had a dog that was sick as often as you are, I'd put it down,\" he observed kindly.\" — Robin Hobb" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2a/robin-hobb-489_dog_if-i-had-a-dog-that-was-sick-as-often-as_1716590.jpg" --- # If I had a dog that was sick as often as you are, I'd put… ![“If I had a dog that was sick as often as you are, I'd put it down," he observed kindly.” quote by Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2a/robin-hobb-489_dog_if-i-had-a-dog-that-was-sick-as-often-as_1716590.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2a/robin-hobb-489_dog_if-i-had-a-dog-that-was-sick-as-often-as_1716590.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2a/robin-hobb-489_dog_if-i-had-a-dog-that-was-sick-as-often-as_1716590.jpg) > “If I had a dog that was sick as often as you are, I'd put it down," he observed kindly.” [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Compassionate humor can mask harsh truths about suffering. **In simple terms:** Humor can soften harsh statements. Key Takeaway Use humor wisely to ease pain. Themes compassion humor empathy Mood thoughtful empathetic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - counseling - friendship - teaching - conflict resolution Key Concepts ethical communication psychology social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - When is humor appropriate in suffering? - How to ensure empathy remains sincere? A Different Perspective Humor may diminish seriousness of suffering. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dog/) [Dog Sick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dog-sick-1296300/) [Kindly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kindly/) [Observed Kindly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/observed-kindly-1296302/) [Sick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sick/) [Sick Observed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sick-observed-1296301/) ## Related quotes > [My daughter Gabby very kindly once said that she thinks I was a better mother because I was doing a job I loved. 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A friend kindly offered me the use of his apartment in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-hirata/the-decision-to-write-full-time-meant-i-couldn-t-afford-to-buy-a/) [Andrea Hirata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-hirata/) > [Gently to hear, kindly to judge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/gently-to-hear-kindly-to-judge/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I may be kindly, I am ordinarily gentle, but in my line of business I am obliged to will terribly what I will at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-the-great/i-may-be-kindly-i-am-ordinarily-gentle-but-in-my-line-of-business-i/) [Catherine the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-the-great/) > [For the people who ostensibly wish me well or are worried about my immortal soul, I say I take it kindly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/for-the-people-who-ostensibly-wish-me-well-or-are-worried-about-my/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [You don't have to feel bad to act kindly. 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For the dead are not powerless.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chief-seattle/the-white-man-will-never-be-alone-let-him-be-just-and-deal-kindly/) [Chief Seattle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chief-seattle/) > [Treat the women and slaves kindly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-holy-prophet/treat-the-women-and-slaves-kindly/) [The Holy Prophet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-holy-prophet/) > [“Kindly go to Hell! (Lestat to Oncle Julien's ghost)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/kindly-go-to-hell-lestat-to-oncle-julien-s-ghost/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [“A lie is not so bad if it is kindly meant. If only she believed them...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/a-lie-is-not-so-bad-if-it-is-kindly-meant-if-only-she-believed-them/) [George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/) ## More by Robin Hobb > [Boredom is vastly underrated. Boredom means that nothing is trying to kill you every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/boredom-is-vastly-underrated-boredom-means-that-nothing-is-trying-to/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [“But that is not true for all folk. Some folk are meant to argue with fate. And win.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/but-that-is-not-true-for-all-folk-some-folk-are-meant-to-argue-with/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [“I tried to leave you alone, Fitz. To find what peace you could, even if it excluded me from your life.” Ten years ago,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/i-tried-to-leave-you-alone-fitz-to-find-what-peace-you-could-even-if/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [“Do you think you're taking Etta out of here?" "Yes," Kennit called over his shoulder up the sairs. "What about all these dead men?"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/do-you-think-you-re-taking-etta-out-of-here-yes-kennit-called-over/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [“A way out is a way in. Then,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/a-way-out-is-a-way-in-then/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [“Die in your dreams, wake up insane.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/die-in-your-dreams-wake-up-insane/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [“I felt a familiar squeezing in what I thought must be my heart. I had heard of being "heartbroken" or "heavy-hearted" but I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/i-felt-a-familiar-squeezing-in-what-i-thought-must-be-my-heart-i-had/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [“They spoke of a dream of a child who bore the heart of a wolf.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/they-spoke-of-a-dream-of-a-child-who-bore-the-heart-of-a-wolf/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [“We all perish in our last attempt to live.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/we-all-perish-in-our-last-attempt-to-live/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [“There is always power in holding a secret.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/there-is-always-power-in-holding-a-secret/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [“... finally realizing that life was to be lived, rather than hoarded against an unseen tomorrow.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/finally-realizing-that-life-was-to-be-lived-rather-than-hoarded/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [“Why, I suddenly wondered, had I wasted all those hours I could have spent with her? Why hadn’t I gone with them, to listen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/why-i-suddenly-wondered-had-i-wasted-all-those-hours-i-could-have/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [“I think I made a better boy than I do a man, I admitted ruefully to the wolf. Why not wait until you've been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/i-think-i-made-a-better-boy-than-i-do-a-man-i-admitted-ruefully-to/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [“So, with all the wide world to choose from, you didn't choose at all. You simply stopped wandering one day”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/so-with-all-the-wide-world-to-choose-from-you-didn-t-choose-at-all/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [“I don't think I can stand it much longer,” he warned her. “Something will have to give way. And I fear it will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/i-don-t-think-i-can-stand-it-much-longer-he-warned-her-something-will/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) [Explore all 500 Robin Hobb quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) ## More Dog quotes > [Many individuals spend a considerable portion of their lifetimes in terror of one imagined catastrophe or another. The classic is that your immortal soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-neil-smith/many-individuals-spend-a-considerable-portion-of-their-lifetimes-in/) [L. Neil Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-neil-smith/) > [I don't like being away from home. That's one reason why I don't work as much as I used to \[when I started my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-powell/i-don-t-like-being-away-from-home-that-s-one-reason-why-i-don-t-work/) [Jane Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-powell/) > [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. But we all learn about love in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-knapp/i-m-38-and-i-m-single-and-i-m-having-my-most-intense-and-gratifying/) [Caroline Knapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-knapp/) > [“The universe contains any amount of horrible ways to be woken up, such as the noise of the mob breaking down the front door,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-universe-contains-any-amount-of-horrible-ways-to-be-woken-up-such/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [That dog, I say that dog is lower than a snake full of buckshot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foghorn-leghorn/that-dog-i-say-that-dog-is-lower-than-a-snake-full-of-buckshot/) [Foghorn Leghorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foghorn-leghorn/) > [It is a fool of a shepherd who culls his dogs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jefferson-smith/it-is-a-fool-of-a-shepherd-who-culls-his-dogs/) [Jefferson Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jefferson-smith/) > [“Flattery looks like friendship, just like a wolf looks like a dog.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-auliq-ice/flattery-looks-like-friendship-just-like-a-wolf-looks-like-a-dog/) [Oscar Auliq-Ice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-auliq-ice/) > [Brothers and Sisters, I bid you beware Of giving your heart to a dog to tear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudyard-kipling/brothers-and-sisters-i-bid-you-beware-of-giving-your-heart-to-a-dog/) [Rudyard Kipling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudyard-kipling/) > [Most people are sensitized to animals through their cats and dogs, but for me it was a flounder. I used to go fishing with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-mathews/most-people-are-sensitized-to-animals-through-their-cats-and-dogs-but/) [Dan Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-mathews/) > [A shoe dog is somebody that really loves shoes, and that was me. I was a runner... that became important to me, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/a-shoe-dog-is-somebody-that-really-loves-shoes-and-that-was-me-i-was/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [“I rub the ears of my dog, my stupid goddam ruddy great dog that I never wanted but who hung around anyway and who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/i-rub-the-ears-of-my-dog-my-stupid-goddam-ruddy-great-dog-that-i/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [The sound man, immune as to a sacrifice of straw dogs, faces the passing human generations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/the-sound-man-immune-as-to-a-sacrifice-of-straw-dogs-faces-the/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [ “A hasty dog always burns his mouth. \[192\]” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sol-t-plaatje/a-hasty-dog-always-burns-his-mouth-192/) [Sol T. Plaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sol-t-plaatje/) > [And if the big dog ain't me, then the house won't get guarded - period.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaquille-o-neal/and-if-the-big-dog-ain-t-me-then-the-house-won-t-get-guarded-period/) [Shaquille O'Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaquille-o-neal/) > [“A year-long study by the University of Pennsylvania, ending in 2009 and published in the journal Applied Animal Behavior Science (Elsevier), showed that aggressive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-custo/a-year-long-study-by-the-university-of-pennsylvania-ending-in-2009/) [Edward Custo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-custo/) [Browse all 6,836 Dog quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dog/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If I had a dog that was sick as often as you are, I'd put it down,\" he observed kindly.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robin Hobb" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/if-i-had-a-dog-that-was-sick-as-often-as-you-are-i-d-put-it-down-he/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Dog" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/if-i-had-a-dog-that-was-sick-as-often-as-you-are-i-d-put-it-down-he/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2a/robin-hobb-489_dog_if-i-had-a-dog-that-was-sick-as-often-as_1716590.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2a/robin-hobb-489_dog_if-i-had-a-dog-that-was-sick-as-often-as_1716590.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2a/robin-hobb-489_dog_if-i-had-a-dog-that-was-sick-as-often-as_1716590.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If I had a dog that was sick as often as you are, I'd put it down,\" he observed kindly.” — Robin Hobb", "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": "Robin Hobb", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If I had a dog that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/if-i-had-a-dog-that-was-sick-as-often-as-you-are-i-d-put-it-down-he/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/if-i-had-a-dog-that-was-sick-as-often-as-you-are-i-d-put-it-down-he/#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 } } ] } ```