Hello Max and welcome to the forum
Work your mom up slowly with spiders, and in time you should have what you want.
Start off with a typical 1/2" adult jumping spider (Salticidae sp.), then wait a few months, then get a 2"+ wolf spider (Lycosidae sp.). Wait awhile again, then get yourself a dwarf tarantula such as a 3"+ Chilean Red (Euathlus sp.). The trick is to start off small, let her get use to it (2 months or longer), and then increase a bit on size with a new species. It is a trick that has worked wonderfully with my wife over the last few years, haha.
If you can't even start with the jumping spider, tell her it is to trade/sell on the forum, but of course keep it for yourself and in time she will forget about it/them. That is how I got started back in July, and spiders were a big no-no with her, but I have over a dozen now and some are getting somewhere in size now. The next step after her getting use to my wolf spiders is get the Chilean Red I have been longing for.
Originally I started off with one mantid, and nothing else as bugs were not allowed (but as I saved a local mantid from the winter freeze she couldn't say no). She laid ooths (ootheca - egg sacks) which hatched, so I needed to get fruit fly culture to feed them. Then it kept slowly increasing to the point where I am at now.
I've had over 60+ adult mantids at one point (last summer), about a dozen ooths at any time incubating to hatch, 7 pet jumping spiders, a vinegaroon, 3 large wolf spiders (one that is a bit over 2.5"), several wolf spider slings, several other locally caught pets (millipedes/centipedes/various beetles/etc), isopod cultures 1000+, various fruit fly cultures, springtail cultures, a cricket colony, waxworm/moth culture, etc.
As you can see it does work.
I've heard many other members have had great success in starting small as well and now keep whatever they want, so hopefully you'll get to do the same in time.
The only no I have gotten, that I was unable to get around, was about getting cockroach feeders - as she's afraid they will colonize in the house if they escape (no matter the species). With only that one battle lost I'm not too worried.
The only issue I can see for you is your country, as mantids and some other pets, can be nearly impossible to get in Canada. There are other Canadian members here though, so perhaps one will contact you about it, or you'll "figure out the ropes" of getting some. The only trick I have heard of is collecting some mantids in the wild yourself, near the US/Canada border, which you are close to Washington state so that might be a possibility where you live. Check your local parks and such for them,
here is a guide on how to find them too.
