​CatSpan Ferals Registered Charity (CFRC) is a non-profit, registered Canadian charity. CFRC is entirely volunteer-based and rely solely on donations and fundraising events. 100% of all proceeds go directly towards feline care. Please note that we are not affiliated with the Nanoose Bay CatSpan Society.

​​CFRC is based on the East coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. We primarily operate within the BC School District 69 catchment area, spanning from Deep Bay to Nanoose Bay (encompassing the Oceanside community). 

​CatSpan does not have a physical storefront or space for the public to visit. Because of this we rely heavily on wonderful foster homes to look after cats the in our care. We can only rescue as many cats as we have openings in foster care, so are always looking for volunteer to become a foster home.
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We also have the support of our amazing adoption partners, who provide space in their stores for our adoptable cats to be viewed by potential adopters, as well as provide a public drop-off location for donations to CatSpan.

The green shading indicates our primary operating area.

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OUR HISTORY

Our cofounder and previous President, Barbara McGowan, moved to Nanoose Bay in 1989 and noticed a lot of little cats on the rocks at the beach at Schooner Cove. She did not know much about feral cats at the time, but noticed that, apart from a few fish scraps from fisherman, no one seemed to be feeding them. She started going down to feed them every day and at the height of it she counted 44 cats/kittens there. She eventually bumped into a few others who were feeding them and they sorted out a schedule. She met Dr. Hanna from Lighthouse Vet Clinic and she was kind enough to come down at take a look at the situation. They started with medication to treat their eyes as many had infections. They held garage sales to raise money, as they had to pay for spays and neuters out of their own pockets. After a couple of years, there came a really cold winter and they got permission for the Marina to build some shelters for the cats on the beach and then eventually moved them to "kitty village" on Outrigger Road, which consisted of little houses and covered feeding stations. By then, they had recruited a few more volunteers, and feeding became easier, but money was still short. From the beginning, she had called the group CATSPAN for Cat Spay and Neuter. In 2004, the group became a registered charity with CRA and it just grew from there. With a growing volunteer base it has expanded and flourished and has become the great organization we know today.

​Sadly, our cofounder and President, Barbara McGowan (pictured to the right), lost her battle with cancer on July 7th, 2021. She was an incredible woman, and a true "cat angel", rescuing and improving the lives of so many cats and kittens.