So I've always found it difficult to find non-leather shoes for Kieran. There seems to be an abundance for girls, woman and men, but for boys it's so hard! If I am lucky enough to find a pair they are so stiff that K can't walk good. We have a couple pair of canvas shoes, but in the winter I think it would be best to have something warmer. Here in Michigan we have some harsh winters and we are in for a good one! Last winter we stuck with the canvas ones and just doubled his socks. But he's 2 now and all over the place. I can order some vinyl squeaky shoes(he had some last year), but I'd love to get him some flexible tennis shoes. If anyone knows of any...please share with me!
This brings me to something I've had on my mind. A while back I read an article in VegNews. It was asking veg*n's if they would buy leather shoes if bought at a second hand store. A lot said yes and some said no. I can see the reasoning on both sides. I mean...if someone gave me a pair of used shoes and they were made of leather. Wouldn't it be a waste to just throw the out instead of putting them to good use? I wouldn't purposely go out to a regular store and buy them, but I think this is different. Then again, I think the thought of knowing I'm wearing "leather" might freak me out. I don't know. I was just considering finding some hand be downs or used shoes at the Salvation Army or something. Then it wouldn't be so bad?
A lot of people probably think it's silly that I'm struggling so much with this, but I'm sure some of you veg*ns out there understand! LOL.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
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10 comments:
i don't think it's silly. you have your principles to live by, nothing wrong with that. good luck on the shoe hunt!
I can see where you're coming from. maybe this is a different way to look at it,buying second hand leather shoes isn't contributing to the farmer or the slaughter of that animal - the original owner of the shoes did that. You're contributing to the Salvation Army. Just do what feels right for you! ;)
Not silly at all! and I can totally see the logic behind buying it secondhand or as a hand-me-down.
Good luck finding the pair perfect for Kieran!
Not Silly! I can totally understand. Now, I'm on a mission to find some Animal friendly kid shoes... :-)
I waiver on this decision too.
When I used to do a lot of animal rights protest the first thing people would say (to be jerks to us) was NICE LEATHER SHOES! Then of course I could shoot back with the whole - NOT LEATHER comment.. I guess if you had 2nd hand leather shoes you can just lie and say they aren't leather, if you don't have time to get into the whole explanation! haha I do think that buying 2nd hand shoes is totally different.. you're not really doing the supply/demand thing, so it isn't contributing to the killing of animals.
I so completely hear you on this issue. I did just buy my oldest a pair of vintage (verrry vintage) leather dress shoes... it turns out they are actually a tad too small for him anyways. But, shoes! It is so hard right now I am liking a brand called Morgan and Milo that makes cute canvas shoes... but come winter I'm not sure what we'll do. Keep me posted on any findings!
Try taking a look @ http://www.vegetarianshoesandbags.com/kids/vegan+shoes/search.aspx
They have vegan shoes for the whole family!
And, they are running a free Shoes for a Year sweepstakes, good now through December 5.
The lucky winner gets a free pair of shoes every month for all of 2009. Entries are made each time a purchase is made, however no purchase is necessary. Anyone can go to the site to enter ONCE at http://www.vegetarianshoesandbags.com/vegansweepstakes/freeshoesforayear.aspx . They won't accept duplicate entries at this address, however.
http://www.tsukihoshi.com/ has some cute non-leather tennis shoes for boys. I don't know if they are eco or not. Even though buying/taking second shoes keeps them out of landfills for a while, it is important for little feet to have shoes that fit and form well, so new is kind of important.
To me, it is more important to have something that will last and last, to help reduce the amount of everything we consume. So, this choice tells me I am alright with leather second hand. I only have one pair, and used them on our wedding day.
I buy most of my shoes second hand, that way if the sneakers have a little leather stitching on the sides like most do (why?) I don't worry.
If I could find an awesome vegan shoe at a reasonable price that I know wouldn't break in 2 months, I would totally. But, as it stands, second hand (leather or not) is where it is at.
It took me a long while to get to this point.
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