I only squash flies, if they’re in the house. Maybe a small spider here and there, but I try to stay away from spiders because they freak me out. Anything else gets caught and released or as I’ve probably mentioned a hundred times here added to my son’s insect collection.
I don’t even squash wasps or bees that get into the house. They are highly beneficial insects, and it’s very easy to catch them in a jar or cup and let them go outside. We sometimes have yellowjackets build nests around the yard, and we don’t bother them. They are fascinating to observe. We also have these very cool wasps called pipe organ mud daubers. The females build mud nests shaped like pipe organ pipes right near our front door. Each cell of the nest has a paralyzed spider in it, which the female lays an egg on. When the female is adding mud to the nest, she fans it with her wings to make it dry, producing a strange humming sound. When the new wasps are grown, they chew their way out of the nest. The kids and I enjoy watching the progress of the nest-building and waiting to see how long it takes for the babies to grow up. Once the nests are empty, we scrape them right off the house. It would be a shame to squish them and miss out on all that free entertainment and education. :)