Nothing worse for leather than water, unless it's water and manure! I've tried about everything to keep manure and water from ruining leather. Sno Seal is about as good as it's gonna get IME. Fact is that if you're going to get leather wet, you are probably better off using a synthetic or rubber if you can. That is if you want to keep the leather. Or you can oil the crap out of it until the leather won't take anymore and then put a wax over it. I've never been able to get some leathers to take oil, like Bean boots. The finish they use won't take any oil I ever tried, so the leather rots around the stitching, it gets stiff and there ya go. The Sorls uppers are the same way. Hmmm, maybe I should have tried applying the oil from INSIDE the boot?! If you want to wear leather around manure, just get the cheap boots cuz they won't last any longer than the high dollar ones. Of course most people don't live in manure by choice, so maybe this is wasted effort!
I buy 3 or 4 pair of "choppers" every winter, the mitts you put wool liners in. Most I can get are Alyeska brand I think, maybe some Kincos too. Anyhoo, they tend to be a yellowish finish and you simply cannot get them to take any sort of waterproofing or oil when new. Once the "yellow" wears off you can get then to take some, but that finish only wears off after repeated wettings it seems and by then the leather is starting to let go around the stitching. Wish I could still get the old NY made deerskin choppers like they used to make down in Gloversville NY (they made gloves, so, Gloversville). I haven't seen them in decades, and they were expensive back then. Used to be guys going around the mountians buying deerskins to sell for gloves and mitts.