Human Interest Animals Celebrity Pets Neil Patrick Harris Welcomes Golden Retriever Puppy to His Family on Christmas: 'Thanks, Santa' Neil Patrick Harris and his husband, David Burtka, are already pet parents to dogs Gidget and Spike By Eric Todisco Eric Todisco Eric Todisco is a former digital news writer at PEOPLE. He left PEOPLE in 2021. People Editorial Guidelines Published on December 30, 2020 12:03PM EST Neil Patrick Harris. Photo: Neil Patrick Harris/Instagram Neil Patrick Harris's children found a very special gift under the Christmas tree this year. On Tuesday, the How I Met Your Mother actor, 47, revealed that his family of four – husband David Burtka and their 10-year-old twins Harper and Gideon — welcomed a new puppy, Ella, into their home on Christmas morning. Harris shared a photo on Instagram of himself and his children, all wearing matching holiday pajamas, posing beside the adorable golden retriever puppy. "Oh Santa, what have you done??" he captioned the post. "On Christmas morning, @dbelicious and I watched Gideon and Harper open a box filled with... a golden retriever puppy. Her name is Ella, and she has pretty much taken over our lives." He continued, "She’s curious, clumsy, and sublime. Except for when she’s peeing everywhere. Or gnawing on everything. Which is always. Methinks we need some training. But first, I must go cuddle. Thanks, Santa. You rule. #grateful." Many of Harris' followers commented on his post and gushed over Ella. Good Girls actress Christina Hendricks wrote, "Are you kidding me????? So sweet. Congrats!" "It’s all over now! What a cutie," said chef Andrew Zimmern. Neil Patrick Harris Says He and Son Gideon Came Face to Face with Sharks: 'Incredibly Exciting' Ella is the latest addition to the family's pet lineup, which also includes two rescue mutts, Gidget and Spike. Last month, the couple appeared in PEOPLE's Sexiest Man Alive issue with their dogs and opened up about quarantining with the animals amid the COVID-19 pandemic. "Having these sweet dogs that are able to cuddle with you and give you unconditional love is important," said Harris. David Burtka, Neil Patrick Harris. Michael Schwartz Burtka, 45, a professional chef and actor, added, "The walks every day with the dogs have been nice. They've been loving it. Taking a walk with your family, there's nothing like it. Things come up that you talk about and the dogs are getting exercise so they're feeling happy and in turn, we're all happy." Neil Patrick Harris/Instagram Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka Celebrate Wedding Anniversary: 'You Made My Heart Complete' The two dogs also each have their own Instagram accounts—@gidgetgrams and @spikegrams— with more than 11,000 followers combined. Hopefully, Ella will get her own account too.