In Early Modern England the greyhound often bore an armorial role, and it was widely acknowledged to possess cultural significance. Although the type was less strictly defined than in later periods, its specific qualities could nevertheless be itemised: ‘the best of the gentle kind of hounds.’ This chapter argues that it was for this reason they were frequently mentioned by Shakespeare, who made use of them for theatrical and rhetorical ends. The chapter begins with the catalogues of canine types to be found in Macbeth and King Lear and goes on to consider the invocation of greyhounds in Julius Caesar, Henry VI Part 3, Henry IV Part 2 and, most famously of all, in the king’s speech at the siege of Harfleur in Henry V. The greyhound’s contribution to comedy is also acknowledged with some bawdy moments from Twelfth Night, The Taming of the Shrew and Much Ado About Nothing, together with seemingly ironical allusions to its prowess in Coriolanus and Love Labour’s Lost. Throughout the chapter particular attention is paid to terminology that originates from coursing, and it ends with the overt references to be found in Venus and Adonis and by acknowledging the historical persistence of the name Hector as applied to dogs of several kinds.