Small Lab

Question
We have a new lab puppy that was born 4 weeks ago, she's not yet 1 lb. yet.  She's the runt of course but is this a sign of something wrong?  The vet saw her and said she seems healthy but we are concerned for her health down the road.  She won't come home for another 3 weeks so we hope she'll grow more.  Thoughts?

Answer
In most cases it won't be a problem.  I just checked my 5 month old Lab Raven is only about 18'' high.  I am in touch with many of the people with litter mates and have seen one.  They are bigger, perhaps a lot.  We have had some other, smaller Labs.  Our puppies always seem to end up smaller than their litter mates.  Several of them have lived normal healthy lives.  Unless you have a life planned for her where size is important, I wouldn't worry about it.  If you need a dog able to retrieve a winged gander, you may to look around more.  Our Holly we raised for an assistance dog school 3 years ago was small for a Lab.  They trained her as a hearing assistance dogs.  She may not have been big enough to open doors and turn on light switches.