Are Shih Tzu's suitable around people with asthma, as my friend would love a puppy, her grandaughter who visits her often has this condition, she doesnt want to shut the puppy out of the room when her grandaughter visits. All advice welcome.

It's often the dander and not the coat that affect people.  The only way to be sure is to spend time, maybe at a breeder's house where there are plenty of them, and see if she reacts. :)

Thank you for your reply, what is dander?

Dead skin - aka dandruff! The animal's saliva is also an allergen for somesufferers, not the hair or dander.

Allergies are strange, they can come and go,  I was always very allergic to animals up until about 10 years ago - now I'm not, I'm absolutely fine with most dogs, but I do find labs and spaniels can still affect me.  I now have a golden retriever and a collie cross, so it isn't the long hair!  

There are wipes that you can buy from PAH which supposed to help with the dander problem, not sure if they work though but might be worth a try.  I also find showering the dogs quite regularly helps too :)

Yes the saliva too as JG says, sometimes when my dogs lick me, I get a bit blotchy

One of my friends is allergic to a certain part of a male dog or should I say what it produces, so there are many things that people can be allergic to in dogs :d