Ally's Eight-Legged Journey

Today the stick insects intended for my daughters Christmas present arrived. Fortunately, they were all intact and live, but it could have been a very different story. Last week I decided that since my six year old had been pestering me for a pet for what feels like forever, and since she has taken such an active interest in checking on the Spoods each night with me, that I would order her pets of her own. I was very aware that ultimately the responsibilty of the pet would most likely end up on my shoulders, and that she wasn't ready for something like a Guinea pig or a hamster. So I looked for an appropriate invertebrate pet. Stick insects were my favoured choice, as snails tend to smell really bad. Stick insects are also reasonably easy to keep for beginners, don't require any special food (many eat the plants native to the area around my house) and they are nice and slow for building confidence with handling. Obviously, The Spider Shop is my preferred distributor of in...