Katherine Heigl Says She Thinks Her Kids Are 'Really Overwhelmed' by All Their Pets: 'I Feel Bad'

"I think the kids are feeling very much [like] they live in a zoo at the moment," the actress teases of life at home with her three kids and many animals

Katherine Heigl's whole family has their hands full when it comes to taking care of all their pets at home.

While speaking with PEOPLE about her Artware Shopify store, a new self-designed clothing and accessories line inspired by her long-standing philanthropy in animal advocacy, the actress opened up about her kids' interest and involvement with animals.

The Firefly Lane star, 44, lives in the mountains of Utah with her husband Josh Kelley, eight dogs, three cats and three children — Nancy Leigh "Naleigh" Mi-Eun, 14, Adelaide Marie Hope, 11, and Joshua Bishop Jr., 6, all of whom she shares with Kelley.

"I think my children are really overwhelmed," she jokes of life at home with their pets. "I feel bad now. Between eight dogs and three cats and three children and this house, and then, of course, my work. What have I done?"

"I think the kids are feeling very much [like] they live in a zoo at the moment," she adds.

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Related:Katherine Heigl Admits She 'Didn't Know How to Raise' Kids in L.A., Shares Why Family Moved to Utah

Heigl says she's encouraging her kids to get involved in the animals' lives, even though it's a "work in progress."

"I think children are sort of innately born compassionate, it just needs to be encouraged," she notes.

Out of her three kids, the actress says daughter Adelaide is the "most pet-friendly."

"She's really good with the dogs. She's 11, so who knows what she's going to be when she grows up? But she vacillates between a vet or a horse trainer. She loves the animals and they love her. She has a real receptivity to it," says Heigl.

As for her son Joshua, Heigl says the 6-year-old is constantly trying to get their Rottweiler puppies — who the actress notes are "quite big" — to "stop jumping on him and stop licking him."

Harboring a close relationship with her own furry friends later turned into what is now Heigl's full-fledged dedication to ending animal cruelty and advocating for animal wellness. The actress' new Shopify store holds a variety of self-designed pet-themed hoodies, T-shirts, tote bags and mugs inspired by the cause close to her heart.

"I thought, 'You know what? If there's something I can do to incentivize people to financially participate, then I'm going to do that," says Heigl.

In celebration of the store's opening, Heigl is donating 100 percent of its first-year proceeds to the Jason Debus Heigl Foundation, the animal advocacy non-profit organization she created alongside her mom, Nancy, in 2008, in honor of their late brother and son, respectively.

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