What Was on Myka Stauffer's Deleted Footage? YouTube Clip Revealed to Be of Adopted Son with Duct-Taped Hand

Mar. 15, 2025

Photo:Vox Media Studios

Vox Media Studios

Myka and James Stauffer’s YouTube followers believed the couple was hiding something when they omitted footage of their adopted son wearing duct tape on his thumb.

In December 2017, the Stauffers shared a video about Huxley’s food anxietyafter they brought him home from Chinatwo months earlier. Myka promptly deleted and re-uploaded the vlog, but the “new” version was about 20 seconds shorter than the original post.

Suspicious viewers took it upon themselves to investigate what was cut from the revised video, and many were alarmed to discover footage of Huxley’s thumb wrapped in duct tape. This seemed to be a preventative measure taken to stop the little boy from sucking his thumb, and other YouTubers voiced their opinionsover Huxley’s apparent treatment.

Premiering on Jan. 15 on Max, Vox Media Studios' new docuseriesAn Update on Our Familyexplores how evidence of Huxley’s makeshift thumb guard gave viewers a significant reason to distrust the Stauffers, especially after they suddenly stopped featuring their adopted toddler in any vlogs.

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Myka and James Stauffer.Myka Stauffer/Instagram

Myka Stauffer/Instagram

As several conspiracy theories circulated on social media, people even called in complaints to the couple’s local sheriff’s office.

Prior to the deleted duct tape incident, Myka and James also faced backlash for other videos showing Huxley wearing a thumb guard.

Once again, viewers questioned the Stauffers' means of breaking Huxley’s thumb-sucking habit. Myka and James were quick to address concerns about the thumb guard in her vlogs.

The Ohio-based parents adopted Huxley, who was later diagnosed with autism, from China when he was 2½ and sought adoption dissolution two years later, claiming they were unaware of the extent of his disabilities. Their decision was met with widespread, extreme backlash that eventually drove the family offline.

‘An Update on Our Family’ docuseries.Vox Media Studios

The Stauffers, as well as Huxley’s new family, have not responded to PEOPLE’s requests for comment.

“We are privy to this case and given the facts at hand, we feel this was the best decision for Huxley,” Myka and James' lawyers, Thomas Taneff and Taylor Sayers, told PEOPLE in an exclusive statement issued in May 2020. “In coming to know our clients we know they are a loving family and are very caring parents that would do anything for their children.”

“Since his adoption, they consulted with multiple professionals in the healthcare and educational arenas in order to provide Huxley with the best possible treatment and care,” Taneff and Sayers continued. “Over time, the team of medical professionals advised our clients it might be best for Huxley to be placed with another family.”

The vloggers' legal team noted that the Stauffers followed the advice of medical professionals, which, the lawyers clarified, “did NOT include any considerations for placement in the foster system, but rather to hand-select a family who is equipped to handle Huxley’s needs.”

source: people.com