Nicole RichieNicole Richie and Joel Madden are expanding the family in true Hollywood tradition.

They've adopted.

Only they skipped the trip to Africa (sorry Angelina) and looked no farther than their doorstep.

Richie unveiled the newest member of the fam on her website last week, a cat named Tabitha.

Says Richie,

"One dark and lonely night, I heard a little puss puss cry from outside. At first, I thought it was Joel. But to my surprise, there she was. A sad, and very hungry kitten. She looked groomed, and was a little chubby, so I assumed she was a neighbor’s cat and ignored it. But she came back a week later and she was so skinny and I could tell she was starving. I couldn’t resist. I fed her, and she was as happy as Benji Madden in a sorority house."

I'm always relieved when I hear a celebrity has gone with a rescue instead of blowing mega cash on a purebred.

The latter always sets off a dangerous trend (Nicole's former pal Paris and her purse dog fad, anyone?), while the former is both socially responsible and just plain heartwarming.

Nicole is joining a long line of celebs using their names to help further the rescue cause -- folks like Bernadette Peters and Mary Tyler Moore who started Broadway Barks to place homeless dogs with families and Jennifer Aniston who added doggie number three to her family recently, picking him up from a shelter.

Richie has had her bumps in the road, but this bit of news makes me like her more. How about you?

 

Image via Nicole Richie