No, I don't think my shoes had been eaten by my dogs. Actually I am very sure of that because I always look at their stools to see if there's any abnormalities in them like worms or blood. Never seen any sign of leather. Still it's a mystery. I have really looked everywhere even under the bed and behind the cupboards.
I have just thought of something. It might not be a good idea to discipline our dogs with sticks. That might make them become afraid of sticks. So if they are faced with an intruder who is armed with a stick, they may not attack. Usually I use a small wet towel to smack them when they are puppies. When they grow up, they still remember the towel smacking. It's very much less likely for an intruder to try to fend off a dog attack with just a towel.