Katherine Heigl Introduces Her 3 New Rescue Puppies — All with One-of-a-Kind Names

The Emmy winner is a lifelong dog-lover and animal activist

Katherine Heigl just increased her dog mom duties threefold.

In a Monday, March 24, Instagram video captioned “Exciting News!,” the Grey’s Anatomy actress introduced the world to her three new rescue puppies.

“We adopted three new babies,” the star, 46, says in the clip. “One of them is supposed to go to my mother, but, um, I don’t know if she’s going to be able to get her away from me.”

The 27 Dresses star then turned her camera around to show her adorable new “babies.”

“They are so sweet and so delicious,” the mom of three says.

In the video, the three puppies play on the rug with one of Heigl’s other dogs. While the actress does not reveal their breeds, their fluffy, curly coats suggest some kind of poodle mix. One of the puppies has a mix of black and white fur, while the others are almost entirely dark.

“The black and white one is a boy, we named him Liam Neeson,” Hiegl shares. “And then that little black one with the curly hair, we’re thinking of Maeve Myrtle, but I’m still thinking on that one.”

As for the last “silly little black one,” her name is Clara Rose, named after the actress’ mother’s aunt Clara. In the video clip, Clara and Liam get into a spat on the floor. At one point, the puppies are whining before breaking apart.

“Liam Neeson is certainly taking after his namesake — very fierce,” she comments after the fight. 

Heigl and her family adopted the puppies just four days after St. Patrick’s Day. So, they chose Irish names — well, except for Clara, a German name. Though, Hiegl isn’t entirely sold on Maeve. 

“If anyone can think of a name for Maeve Myrtle, I don’t know,” she says. 

In 2022, the Emmy winner introduced her line of health-focused dog food, Badlands Ranch. Heigl shared with PEOPLE that the goal of the brand is to include “as much healthy healing nutrition as possible.” The formula includes wholesome ingredients meant to aid brain and immune function.

“It’s just really rich food and very full of protein. So you don’t want to overfeed it because you don’t need to,” she explained. “And that’s the beauty of it, too. A bag should last you a good bit.”

Dog food isn’t Heigl’s first foray into animal activism. Along with her mother, Nacy Heigl, the duo founded the Jason Heigl Foundation. The organization, named after Heigl’s late brother, provides and supports pet education, adoption and health programs to battle widespread pet mistreatment. Proceeds from Badlands Ranch go to support the non-profit.

“The food is this beacon of hope for us financially to try to continue to do the work that we’re doing,” she explained.