I sprayed this spider when I saw it because it was in the house hanging out near where our dogs go in and out. We don't usually get spiders with big "butts" like this inside. I tried to get a picture of its eyes to identify it but I can't tell where the eyes are.
This not a dangerous spider; it either is a wolf spider (family Lycosidae) or a grass/funnel web spider (family Agelenidae). I lean towards it being the former, but the distinguishing features (eye pattern and spinnerets) cannot be seen clearly in your photo. Members of both families often are found indoors, but they are unlikely to bite unless you pick one of them up carelessly.
Thanks for your reply, suunto. I am very arachnophobic so I really want to make sure this spider was not anything poisonous.
I'm not sure it could be a wolf spider -- I thought they were pretty big?
I have some more pictures where you can see the size and maybe the eyes (and underside). Photography is obviously not my area of expertise!
I guess I have to post the photos individually.
One more.
One of your photos was clear enough for the spinnerets to be seen, which tells me that it is not a wolf spider. Based on that and the stripes visible on the cephalothorax, the most likely diagnosis is a grass spider (family Agelenidae) such as an Agelenopsis sp. - see http://tinyurl.com/ybpudwg for an example (please note that there are many species, and the markings may not be an exact match for yours). BTW, wolf spiders can come in a wide range of sizes; I've seen ones much smaller than your specimen in our garden.
