Drew Barrymore on why she got herself pets: 'wanted a homely environment'

Drew Barrymore, who owns four rescue cats, two dogs, and a bearded dragon named Jeremy, 7 pets in total, explained why she loves them, especially her cats.

The actress and talk show host revealed how she ended up getting two rescue cats as her pets when she was living alone.

"The first pets I ever got for myself were two rescue cats from the shelter when I was a teenager and living on my own. I wanted to create more of a homey environment. And I could not have loved them more," told Barrymore to PEOPLE.

Barrymore's four current cats are "all rescues" and were brought home with help from the her daughters: Olive, 10, and Frankie, 8.

"It never even crossed my mind to do anything but rescue. I figured there were so many cats that needed to be rescued. I've never considered buying one from a store," she said.

The family adopted Peach and Lucky "about six years ago" and then welcomed felines "Big Kitty and Little Kitty Barrymore" about four years later.

"Peach has a fabulous tail that we call 'The Feather Duster' because it's just the biggest bushiest thing you've ever seen in your life. It looks like a tree in a big forest," the actress shared "Big Kitty is a real lazy, big lover."

"They couldn't be more different," Barrymore said while speaking of the quartet of kitties, but all the animals are equally important.