Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

Flip

Original poster

Proper shoes for DS - 7.5 months

8 replies

Wilkie · 27/08/2007 20:37

He is just about walking and I want to buy him some shoes. He is NEXT size 2 in pre-walkers but I can't find 'proper' shoes in his size.

Any suggestions please??

Don't want to spend too much as he is rapidly growing!!!!! Also, do you think they are necessary?!?!?!

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

Olihan · 27/08/2007 20:53

DON'T!

It's really bad for their feet to be crammed into shoes as they need space to flex. You could be setting him up for all sorts of foot problems later in life if you start forcing his feet into improperly fitting shoes.

Proper shoes won't help him walk either as they use their toes to grip and help them balance.

I think the recommendation is to give it 6 weeks after they are walking independently to get proper shoes and then to only put them on for outdoor wear, inside they need to be barefoot as much as possible.

If you really want to buy shoes of some description the best type is the ShooShoo or Inchblue or Daisyroots soft leather shoes that aren't restrictive but give a bit of protection when they're toddling about. They're about £15 a pair, I think but come in some fab designs.

Clarks and Startrite also do 'crawling' and 'cruising' shoes that are about £25 a pair if you'd rather have a pair that look more 'shoe' like.

Piffle · 27/08/2007 20:56

you only relaly need proper shoes when they start walking out of doors
i never bought proper shoes for mine until they'd been walking several month juts kept them in Bobux daisy roots for grip.

berolina · 27/08/2007 20:59

I don't think ds even had the soft leather thingies until he was a year. He walked (i.e. unaided - I assume when you say 'just about walking', you mean holding onto furniture/your hand?) at 14 months and once he was confident enough to toddle around outside we got him 'proper' shoes. The longer/more time without shoes, the better, IMO

Original poster

Wilkie · 27/08/2007 21:01

Great thanks. Thought you were supposed to put them into proper shoes (no idea why just had pre-concieved idea about it!! )

I'll leave it.

He's not walking unaided but walks around holding your hand, furniture, pushing his walker thing along etc.

Cool thanks for info.

OP posts:

kathryn77 · 27/08/2007 21:05

I tried to get myds measured when he started walking round furniture and they refused until i could prove he coud walkaroung the shop and had been walking 6 weeks!

He got measured last week and is properly walking now, 12 months, and it was a nightmare choosing.. we were in a proper shoe shop with start rite and clarkes, but they seemed to change their mind about whether we wanted soft shoes, or intermiediate shoes or hard shoes!

Found it confusing so we got softish ones from start rite.. he looks cute though in them!

He did also pull the ladies hair when being measured!

yogabird · 27/08/2007 21:07

do keep putting it off for as long as possible they're so expensive and as everyone has said, it's better for their feet without

tribpot · 27/08/2007 21:11

Don't get any shoes, he's fine. More time sans shoes the better.

Heated · 27/08/2007 21:14

Without is better. Mine had to have some kind of footwear for nursery to protect feet and for when they went for 'walks', so they've had soft leather shoes and Startrite crawler shoes (which offer smaller sizes than Clarkes) but they didn't wear them at home & went barefoot.

Flip