Kate Walsh: I'd absolutely make a cameo on "Grey's Anatomy"

Kate Walsh is very familiar with broadcast networks' long seasons -- having starred in both "Grey's Anatomy" and "Private Practice."

The actress recently appeared in season 1 of FX's award-winning "Fargo," and says she's currently reading scripts for her next project. And this time she may opt for a shorter run.

"I think I'll be looking more towards cable," Walsh said during a recent visit to CBS News. "It's a little shorter order because those are long hours when you're doing 22 to 25 episodes a year. It's a lot of work and it's fun, but it's a grind."

Walsh knows that "grind" well thanks to stints on television as Dr. Addison Montgomery. "Private Practice," alone, ran from 2007-2013 on ABC. She first introduced that character in 2005 on "Grey's Anatomy" -- and remembers being so surprised that she was asked back to officially join the show.

"I really just thought it was going to be five episodes or something on the show," Walsh, 47, said about "Grey's." "But it turned into a series regular, then a spinoff. We really kind of went through everything together...We were like, 'Oh now it's [Grey's] a huge hit. And now people know us and recognize us.' It was also just great to be part of an ensemble that was experiencing such success."

That success lives on: "Grey's Anatomy" remains on the air with some of the original castmembers, including Ellen Pompeo and Patrick Dempsey.

When asked if she'd ever be interested in making a return cameo on the series, currently in its 11th season, Walsh said, "If she [series creator Shonda Rhimes] invited me to come and do something, I absolutely would. It's like coming home for the holidays."

Walsh has lots of praise for Rhimes, who's also behind "Scandal" and "How to Get Away with Murder."

"I feel she did something kind of marvelous for women that had started to get done in TV, but really hadn't been done, which is give them real characters that were three-dimensional and interesting on their own," said Walsh.

Before she jumps into the next TV series, though, Walsh has plenty of other projects on tap, including a couple she's producing. In the works is a documentary and a single-camera half-house series.

Walsh is also working on an animated series, called "Cat Stories," that's based on her life with boyfriend, Chris Chase, his kids and her beloved cats.

Around season 1 of "Grey's Anatomy" Walsh adopted two cats, Billy and Pablo. "They're awesome...We always rescued cats and dogs in our family," she said.

It's the reason Walsh -- a self-professed "cat lady" -- recently teamed with Purina Cat Chow's "Shelter Volunteer of the Year" program, which is donating money to 50 shelters -- one in every state -- to recognize the work of the shelter volunteers. As part of the initiative, shelter volunteers are submitting their own stories online (through March 15), at CatChow.com, and the most compelling story will win $25,000 to go towards the shelter.

Check out the video above for more on the program and what's next for Walsh.