Nikki Reed and Ian Somerhalder share a deep love for animals. In fact, they refer to their pets as their kids. It’s that love of animals that initially brought the two together. Reed dished to People magazine recently about how that attraction turned to love. She started out, though, by crediting her mom for allowing her to develop her passion.

“From the time I was a little kid, she let us bring in any and everything that needed a home. We had baby coyotes and raccoons and squirrels, anything that needed to be dropper-fed,” she said. “And this was before the Internet, so it was my mom and I at 10 p.m. going to an emergency vet when we didn’t have five dollars to our name, just to ask a vet tech what we should do.”

Nikki Reed and Ian Somerhalder–just recently engaged–already have nine ‘kiddos’ together. Their brood includes four dogs, three cats and two horses–split between the east and west coasts. The two are presently living together in Atlanta.

“I did a horse film about a year ago and I literally couldn’t separate myself from two of the horses. They became like my family and I couldn’t say goodbye,” Reed says. “I’m so lucky that Ian and I are on the same page with animals. We made [adopting the horses] happen together.”

Nikki Reed is taking her love of animals one step further this weekend. She will host the Catdance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, on Saturday, where she hopes to find homes for litters of kittens right there on the red carpet. Presented by Fresh Step litter, the festival will debut six films starring shelter cats. Artist Ashley Berman has designed a custom 14-karat gold and diamond cat dome ring that Nikki Reed will wear. The ring will be auctioned off, with proceeds benefitting the ASPCA.

.@NikkiReed_I_Am hosts the most purrfest film festival #Catdance http://t.co/A1TAorOGSz

— WhoSay (@WhoSay) January 22, 2015

“This is what I live for and it’s my passion, so I love any opportunity to collaborate in this way,” Reed says. “Nothing makes me happier than being a part of this.”

She might want to retract just a bit of that statement, as it’s abundantly clear how happy her engagement and future wedding to Ian Somerhalder makes her. She and her Vampire Diaries star haven’t set a wedding date yet, but she has done nothing but gush about her happiness with her fiance since he proposed and she said yes.

These lovebirds are TOO cute: http://t.co/gE9CVTDwhc pic.twitter.com/rz6Xws2NBz

— POPSUGAR (@POPSUGAR) January 20, 2015

“Honestly just the endless possibilities, you know? We have such an amazing future ahead of us and anything we put our minds to will become a reality,” Reed said. “I’m just excited for all those possibilities.”

Nikki Reed will next appear on the big screen in a thriller called Enter The Dangerous Mind. The film also stars Scott Bakula and Jason Priestley. Ian Somerhalder will no doubt walk the red carpet with his fiancee when the movie premieres in February. Will there be kittens on that red carpet, too, if Nikki Reed gets her way? If so, that could mean a few new ‘kiddos’ going home with them and joining their brood.