one does not know that the Israelites considered dogs to be very impure animals.
The Canaanite woman took no offense to this. Like a beggar to whom decaying
leftovers instead of fresh food are thrown, the Canaanite woman accepted the
humiliation in a natural way; she knew that she deserved nothing and that
nothing should be given to her. Yet, she persistently kept asking."
(Open Wide the Door to Christ, pg. 49