YouTuber Myka Stauffer and husband James have been criticised for their decision to rehome four-year-old adopted son Huxley.
Myka and James adopted Huxley from China three years ago, but made the decision to find a new family for him because “there were a lot more special needs that we were not aware of".
The couple shared an emotional video to Myka’s YouTube channel, titled ‘an update on our family’.
In it, they explained why they’d decided to give up Huxley.
In the seven minute long video, Myka thanked her 716k subscribers for being “amazing” and “so incredibly kind and respectful” regarding their son’s privacy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozthKDdSMZQ&feature=emb_title
She added, “Do I feel like a failure as a mom? Like 500 per cent."
James defended his wife, saying, “I can't say enough how hard Myka has tried throughout this entire journey, the amount of effort she has put in helping Hurxley as much as she can.”
He added, “With international adoptions sometimes there are unknowns, and things that are not transparent on file.
“Once Huxley came home there were a lot more special needs that we weren't aware of, that we weren't told.”
The couple added that it “wasn’t fair” to put out everything that led to their decision, including things that went on in the home that “were hard for Hux”.
But fans were quick to criticise the couple’s decision, with many telling the YouTuber that Huxley “wasn’t a pet”.
Taking to Twitter, one fan wrote, ‘Huxley wasn’t a pet, and you brought him into your children’s lives. Then you ripped that from them.
‘You never would’ve done that had he been your biological child. Horrible.’
Another added, ‘That Myka Stauffer video made me sick to my stomach. talking about rehoming her child as if he’s a pet.’
A third wrote, ‘I’m so angry. what the hell Myka Stauffer. you gave away your SON. a BABY! just because he was different and hard to handle. Despicable’
And a fourth added, ‘You don't "re-home" or "return" an adopted child...you choose to love him and take care of him, not turn against him when things get hard. I'M RAGING.’
Despite the backlash, Myka and James confirmed that Huxley was placed with a new family and that he was “thriving”.
They added that his new mum has medical professional training and is “a good fit”.
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