Yes, you can. But remember that Vaseline should be a temporary fix. Clean your leather shoes before the application. Coat the leather shoes with a layer of Vaseline. This should do the trick, although temporarily. The application of petroleum jelly will soften the leather. This should also help the leather from cracking. Aside from shoes, this should also work well with other leather items. It could be bags, belts, or whatever garment is made of leather. Just make sure it is not rawhide leather. Vaseline will not work with that. When using Vaseline, make sure to use a lint-free cloth. One can always make use of leather shoes or boots during the rain. The prospect of the rain getting into and ruining our leather shoes should never bother us at all. Just make sure the leather shoes are well-protected. There will always be no reason why these beauties cannot go out into the rain.