Puppy socialisation pre-vaccinations

[StillAliveish]

My puppy has to wait 4 weeks before he has his second round of jabs, then another week before he can go for walks. By this time he'll be just over 13 weeks. We've done as much socialisation as we can by taking him to meet neighbours, carrying him on the school run (not all the time because he's really heavy!), little trips in the car to the pet shop etc. but he hasn't met any other dogs. The vet says he can meet other vaccinated dogs but we don't actually know anyone in the area who has a dog! He's seen other dogs while we've been out and about carrying him but he hasn't actually met any. I'm really worried by the time he can go for walks we'll have missed his chance to get used to other dogs. I suppose in normal times he could go to puppy parties at the vets etc. but none are running at the moment, obviously. What do other people do about this?

It’s fine for them to just see other dogs from a distance just to help with anxiety. they don’t have to play with all dogs anyway. Socialisation is getting them used to the world not necessarily being able to play with other dogs - and also early on you want experiences to be positive. If you have an anxious pup those puppy parties can be truly grim!
when dd had all his vacs we had the most amazing daycare lady (found on rover) who paired him up with her v sensible older lab so he learnt how to play appropriately. I kind of think that’s better than puppy parties etc - for example my parent’s dog lives next door to his brother and just played and played all day - totally tired dogs but they also get told off a lot by older dogs as they just totally misread other dog body language. He’s also a bit of a pest with other dogs - thinks everyone’s his friend.
So what I’m saying is don’t worry - what you’re doing is fine, but when you can get him out and about pair him with an older dog that is nice and friendly and you’ll be fine. just be prepared to advocate for your dog and bring him away if you see it’s getting too much!

Have you tried sitting on a park bench with puppy in a carrier/sling so they can watch the world go by? Similarly, you can sit in the boot of your car somewhere and do the same thing.

Socialisation isn't about your puppy meeting loads of dogs, it's about making sure that all of their experiences are positive - so lots of sitting around and seeing calm dogs from a distance is fine - they don't need to meet every dog in the area yet!

Another thing you could do is speak to a local dog walker and ask if they could help. I'm currently working on socialisation with a young dachshund puppy - at first, I brought along a calm older dog who's fully vaccinated and they spend time together/play in the owners' garden - we did that for a few weeks.

The puppy is now old enough for walks so I'm taking him on short 15-20 minutes walk with the same dog so he gets used to the big wide world. Next week I'll bring a different older dog and so on each week, so he gets short bursts of positive interaction with both me and his owner present. This is also helping him bond with me as well as getting to know the other dogs.

I charge £8 for 30 minutes socialisation time but prices may differ depending on where you are!

Thanks both, that's really reassuring and helpful! I'll look into local walkers, thanks for the tip @sunflowersandbuttercups. We've just bought a dog bag so hopefully we can get him used to being in it and then take him out for longer walks to the park. Even if I do look a dolt!

@StillAliveish you'll get SO much attention with a puppy

Just remember anything positive is good, even if it's just sitting in the front garden or something and watching the world go by! There's no need to rush - just lots of positive experiences :)