Would you consider this "allergies"?

Allergies can mean a zillion things -- what are you feeding? 
 
It can also be a nervous thing -- some dogs will scratch when they are nervous.  Can you massage the area and get the dog to stop?

Just wondering.... could it be mites? Caused by manage? is there any hair loss?
And do you have any flea treatment on yet? I would consider doing that and see if that helps...
 
 

I am feeding him EVO, and hehas been on Frontline Plus (for the past three months minus this month) so he would be flea-free until the Sentinel kicked in (keeps flea larvae from forming)...I have inspected him for fleas, and there are none no matter how many times I comb through (lol).  But there is no hair loss, his coat is actually very full and soft.  I wonder if I should get a skin-scrape for mites?

  Does he itch all year round or certain times of the year, such as spring ? That is how you can usually tell if it is allergies to pollens. Jessie started out itching in the spring and summer when she was one year old. By the time she was three, she was itching all year long, which is typical for dogs with allergies, because they become sensitive to more things. She became allergic to house dust mites and storage mites. If it's allergies to pollens, bathing your dog should help. You can find many good shampoos for dogs with skin soothing ingredients. They absorb allergens through their skin, so that's why bathing helps, and even rinsing without bathing can help. You can also avoid having your dog outside during the time of day when pollen levels are higher, which is morning for grass pollens, which would be a likely cause this time of year:
         [linkhttp://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2002/302_itch.html]http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2002/302_itch.html[/link]
 
   You could also try an antihistamine with a fatty acid supplement, such as Derm Caps. Antihistamines are more effective when fatty acids are also given. Here is a link with dosages of antihistamines:
          [linkhttp://www.utskinvet.org/pdf/antihists.pdf]http://www.utskinvet.org/pdf/antihists.pdf[/link]
 
      I hope this information helped, and I also support the idea of a skin scraping to rule out mites.

He was born in August, and I've had him since November...so I guess I haven't really seen his reaction to the summer pollen.  I think I am going to give him some children's benadryl once a day if it gets any worse, and if it clears up, I suppose I will have my answer!  I think I will do a skin scrape as a last resort...

  I hope the Benedryl helps if it is allergies. I had to try several before finding one that helped Jessie. It turned out to be Tavist. Adding a fatty acid supplement to his diet will increase the effectiveness of the Benedryl. Good luck.

Hi - I don't know alot about dogs, I'm learning every day, however, I asked our Vet about giving our new puppy Benadryl and he said that I should not ever need to give Benadryl.  He said that OTC human medicine isn't good for dogs.  Can anyone shed any light on this?  I am just curious. Thank you.

That's weird...my vet said just the opposite.  Matter of fact, I took him to the vet and he told me it would be cheaper to give him benadryl then the "dog-equivalent" to it which is more expensive.  

Christina - I'm not sure why your vet said that, but there are quite a few human type medications that can be used for dogs.  Benadryl (or the generic) is one, so is Pepto Bismol, Kaopectate, etc.  The dosing is often quite different, so it would always be wise to check that first.  For benadryl, it should 1-2 mg per pound, up to 3 times per day.  If it's an allergic reaction to a bee sting, for example, you need to give the highest dose possible, i.e., 50 mg for a 25 lb dog.  I give it to my lab, Sassy, and have been for quite some time for her allergies.  I'm not convinced it's helping much and my vet told me just last week that it's a "great, inexpensive medicine for the dogs it works for" but she also said, it only helps about 15% of the dogs.