In a touching moment that has captivated millions, 4-year-old Waylon Waits sits quietly beside his family’s dog, Stella, and gently pets her for the very first time. Captured in a now-viral TikTok video posted by his mother, Alex Waits, the scene marks a deeply meaningful milestone in Waylon’s journey with nonverbal level-three autism.
“She just lays there really patiently, waits for him to pet her,” Alex told PEOPLE, reflecting on the calm connection between her son and the dog who’s been by his side since the COVID-19 pandemic. When Stella first joined the family, Waylon—then still a baby—had little interest in her and often became overwhelmed by her touch.
“He would scream just from touching her,” Alex recalled. “His sensory sensitivities were so strong that even the softness of her fur was too much.”
But in the last six months, Waylon began slowly bridging the gap—first with his feet, then a tentative finger, and finally by using his toys to make contact. “In the video, he was actually petting her with his Minecraft toy,” Alex laughed. “It’s the only way he’d touch her. I thought it was so sweet and so funny.”
Stella, now five, seems to have intuitively understood that Waylon needed a gentler approach. While she’s playful and energetic with the other two Waits children, she becomes noticeably calm around Waylon—adjusting her behavior with remarkable sensitivity.
“With him, she knows to be calm and careful. She knows he can get spooked easily,” Alex explained. “She tries to make herself small around him.”
When Waylon reached out and touched Stella with his hand—not a toy—Alex instinctively captured the moment on video. “I had a feeling something was going to happen,” she said. “But I didn’t expect him to fully pet her like that. It was just so beautiful.”
The bond forming between her son and their dog has been a powerful sign of progress. “Waylon is still in intensive therapy and just beginning to find his voice and ways to communicate,” Alex shared. “For so long, it felt like he didn’t even know anyone else was in the room. But now he sees her. He wants to be with her. That means everything.”
Continue reading