WOMAN WHO WAS TERRIFIED OF SPIDERS CONQUERS HER FEAR BY BUILDING MINIATURE WORLDS FOR THEM!<br />WITH PIX AND VID<br />BY SHUK YEE TSANG<br />A former arachnophobe has overcome her lifelong fear of spiders by adopting seven jumping spiders and treating them to custom-built miniature apartments, bakeries, bathrooms, living rooms and even a day out trip to the McDonald's setup!<br />Ashley Stone, 38, from Las Vegas, USA, is a passionate stay-at-home mom who first saw cute videos of jumping spiders online and was stunned by their big eyes and curious behaviour.<br />Since then, she’s adopted a whole crew of spiders: Charlotte, Eden, Mulan, Fievel, Icarus, Tilly, and Arcadia, and now dedicates her time to crafting elaborate setups for their enrichment.<br />Ashley uses dollhouse kits to create these tiny scenes and loves watching the spiders interact with their surroundings, perching on tiny couches or clambering over bakery counters. <br />She says it’s both adorable and enriching for the spiders, who enjoy exploring different textures and surfaces.<br />Her pet spiders, just like humans, have their own personalities: Icarus gets spooked by the phone camera lens, Tilly obsesses over a tripod, and Eden peeks out of her hammock every morning to “check the room” before emerging.<br />While the spiders enjoy their cosy miniature worlds, Ashley also live streams their adventures online, where thousands of viewers are captivated by the unique setups and spider antics.<br />Ashley said: "I used to smush spiders I saw in my house, and now I relocate them outside. I have respect for them now, where before I only had fear.<br />“My favourite is probably the bakery. I like to pretend they’re in there baking and serving customers, haha! Plus, you can put some French bakery music with a video of them in there and it’s adorable.<br />“Tilly really loves my light tripod on my desk. She is always staring at it and even crawled up inside one of the legs and hid for a while. I thought I had lost her that day!<br />“I thought Arcadia was dying, but she was actually moulting. I started crying, and people on TikTok were cheering her on as she climbed out of her old skin. I’ll never forget that.<br />“Jumping spiders are a great way to work through your fear of spiders. They can win even the most fearful people over.<br />“People online love to watch them in real time. The questions and comments flood in and 98% of it is positive.<br />“When Eden wakes up, she’ll hang out of her hammock with just her head and two front legs. I can’t help but smile.”<br />END
