Taking shoes off before you come inside your house

So what if you visit friends in the 'shoes off' brigade when you have /had babies/crawlers/toddlers/lego builders etc?
Do you keep said child firmly on your lap the whole visit to avoid them sitting or playing at your feet on the carpet?

Surely its a no-brainer when you consider what one is treading on outside... Many countries/cultures remove outdoor footwear before entering, let alone after entry... folk in the UK oft find this a tad offensive, surely its right to leave all we tread on outside on the outside... lots of horrid 'stuff' is on the soles of shoes both seen and unseen. Sad isn't it that many can't see how this is a good cultural norm we should adopt wholeheartedly :-)

I wanted to do it a few years ago but my dad and husband struggled as they both liked to wear smart laced-up shoes and it was a palaver to take off and put back on again. These day people slip into trainers or wear slip-ons. I always take my shoes off but don't insist on others.

Yes we take our shoes off - but don’t insist others do if they come in with dress shoes for example/ both of our daughters ask to take shoes off / and as the grandchildren have been brought up to do this / they automatically pop theirs off. Considering what maybe in your shoes I think it’s reasonable. If your feet are cold , take some slippers with you

I have always taken my shoes off and asks visitors to do the same. People step in all sorts including dogs' mess and also now because of Covid, which falls onto the pavement. Workmen have to cover their shoes with plastic. My house, my hygienic rules.

This started in Denmark in the 1970s, although even before that it was common to take a pair of slippers or a pair of shoes with you when you went to visit someone in the winter, so you were not marking their wooden floors with wet boots.

Or for that matter sitting indoors in boots and thick socks necessary outside in the winter cold.

Now, it has become common to take shoes off in the hall.

We always did so if we were wearing wooden clogs, so did the Dutch, and I believe in Austria and Switerzerland it was unheard of not to change shoes on coming indoors.

It is definitely a cultural thing. In Italy, Spain and Portugal where most floors are made of tiles, you didn't do this.

If the floors are cold in a house where you are expected to leavee your shoes at the door, take a pair of thick socks with you to put on. Your host is unlikely to object to that. You could also ask if you might bring slippers with you.

I keep a pair of slippers at my DD’s house. No shoes are allowed indoors there! Her wooden floors are very slippery and even more so if you’re wearing socks or tights.
I have a friend who thinks that removing shoes unless they are wet or muddy is bad manners. According to her only lower class people do this. I think it’s a matter of individual preference and we should respect the wishes of our hosts. All of our 7 grandchildren remove their shoes immediately when they go inside. They’ve been very well trained!

Absolutely, all that invisible dirt ...germs...etc transferring to your carpets etc ...no thanks! Both our doors lead directly into a kitchen with a stone floor ...easy to sanitise....so shoes allowed but not on the carpets in the rest of the house....
If you know you are going to a house where you are expecting to remove your shoes...take slippers with you!

Shoe free zone here. Always take our shoes off when entering anyone's house. Think it is very rude to assume that you can wear outdoor shoes indoors. Most appreciate the gesture although some tell us not to worry. Maybe an age thing as my mother's generationdo not seem to be bothered?

Yes I always do, most of my friends remove theirs too cos they do it at their own houses. I take those elasticated slippers to theirs when visiting to change into. You see all sorts on the ground when you're out walking, it's disgusting, so I definitely don't want to bring it all into my house. My sister told me if I tell her once more to take her shoes off she won't be back.

We didn't bother until someone trod black, sticky engine oil onto the light coloured hall carpet. My husband was very angry and blamed our children until an inspection of everyone's shoes revealed the culprit. It wasn't the kids and it wasn't me! Someone was very shamefaced. We started removing our shoes after that.

Seems little point when we have a dog (though I do wash dog’s paws if very muddy before coming in)

I've never taken my shoes off indoors until I settle in for the night except once in a b&b where I was asked to, and I found that so off-putting that although the owner was lovely I'd never go back there. I know nobody who does this, and I find it bizarre to expect people to do so. Keeping outdoor shoes on certainly never caused any problems for anyone I've known in all my 67 years!

Our family always removes shoes when we come inside our homes. Just think of all the grit and dirt that is on the soles of your shoes from the pavements, etc. Do we really want that in our homes?

No, I expect people to wipe their feet throughly on the mat at the front door

I take my shoes off in my house and put flip flops or slippers on. I don't ask visitors, but most generally do without asking.

I also take my shoes off when I visit my children's houses as they have little ones who are crawling and I wouldn't want to traipse germs and dirt in on the carpets.

We and the rest of the family always remove our shoes when coming into the house. Most friends do too although I wouldn’t dream of requesting it. These days I find most workmen automatically leave their shoes in the porch without being asked.
I once had a visitor and her daughter walk all round our dining room leaving a trail of fox poo that they had trodden in on the drive. The smell!
On the other hand, on her first visit to her boyfriend’s home , our daughter took off her sandals in the hall and was asked to put them on again as his mother (a former nurse) didn’t like bare feet on the carpet.

Doodledog’s post at 11.52 this morning is very sensible and balanced, and I think general points about much of the neurosis about hygiene coming from advertising are very true.

We don't in our house- but one of our sil's insists on it- and therefore we respect his wishes. Simple enough. Take slippers with you, if it bothers you, perhaps.

Myself and my DH always change into slippers when we come indoors and always remove our shoes in other people's houses. I can't think of any of our family or friends who don't remove theirs although I have never asked them to. I would certainly never ask any other visitors to take theirs off unless they were wearing extremely muddy boots.

I don't take my shoes off, unless going upstairs. Countries like India have lower incidences of asthma and other allergies because babies are exposed to dirt, bacteria and viruses early on, resulting in a more robust, less oversensitive immune system. Companies persuade us to buy their myriad cleaning products by making us neurotic about hygiene. Other than daily vacuum cleaning and cleaning of kitchen work surfaces, and bathrooms of course, I keep housework to a minimum. Wearing shoes indoors never killed anyone! (I have raised 3 sons and 2 stepsons.)

I don’t ask anybody to remove shoes on entering. Most people arrive by car and have only walked down the drive..
Floors are meant to be walked on.

We wear our (clean) shoes in the house and don't mind if guests wear theirs. We've never had mud or anything untoward on the floors with this policy.

I don't mind if others want me to wear indoor shoes in their house and will willingly take and wear a pair of soft ballet flats if asked.

However, I consider it the height of rudeness to be asked to take shoes off if I have not been warned beforehand to bring soft indoor footwear. My 'visiting shoes' are always spotless underneath and are chosen to go with my outfit. The thought of walking on other people's floors with socks or tights is highly disturbing to me.

So, a plea to all. Warn people if you want to enforce a 'no shoes' rule.

It can be culturally expected to take your shoes off and lay them by the front door too

I wonder if people have been brainwashed by all the ads for bacteria-proofing everything in sight? Basic standards of housekeeping would ensure that floors don't have 'dog wee, spit etc' on them for very long. If, in the time between the unlikely event that people have trodden it in and the next time the floor is cleaned, anyone has licked the carpet then they might be at a minute risk of something or other, but only then if they have an immune system weakened by illness or underdeveloped because of under-exposure to bacteria or virus.

It is not realistic to see it as a hygiene issue, surely? It is a preference that some people have, as is obvious from this thread, but I can't help thinking that the talk of dog wee and so on is just to justify that preference. Dogs wee on trees or lampposts, where shoes rarely tread.

I do think that the current trend for 'anti-baccing' clothes, toys, surfaces and everything else is (a) to increase the profits of manufacturers, and (b) weakening the immune systems of those who do it. I know that's a slightly separate issue, but I wonder if there is a link.