My golden itches all the time.

Dog allergies tend to get worse with age - where human kids tend to 'grow out of' allergies, dogs tend to 'grow into' them.  That may be why you continue to see an increase despite moving back where he was previously better.
 
For those of us in more southern climates it can be difficult to tell the difference between seasonal and food type allergies, and often even when a dog DOES have food allergies, there are still environmental once underlying all of it.
 
Do you see a thinning coat?  Do you see tough skin in places??  paw-licking? 
 
have you tried anthistamine?  That can often be at least a help.  Plain over the counter Benedryl (or a knock-off) -- 1-2 mg/lb body weight (which sounds like a lot but IS the correct dose) given two to four times a day.  That means a 75 pound dog needs THREE of the OTC capsules given at least twice a day.

He does lick his paws, and his brothers like their paws too. Just today I noticed a little hair missing from his hind rump above his tail. It's all pink too.

I prefer to heal the problem rather than mask it, my wife and I are all natural and don't want to cover it with medicine if we can heal him. I appreciate your fast response and ideas. I did not know about the alergies and age. What does the paw licking imply?

I will go back to my old horrible steroid treatment, quite often if you give the animal a week or so releif they wilal stop licking and it may have to be repeated one more time.....It is like lick granuolmas on the leg...they will heal as long as the dog leaves them alone and  low dose steroids will do that...tis better then haveing the dog lick or chew throufht ehskin

  Welcome to the forum;[]  Paw licking can be from food or environmental allergies. Once your dog starts licking his paws, yeast or bacteria are likely to grow where he's been licking. Allergies effect the ph of a dog's skin, making it easier for yeast and bacteria to grow. Is the skin between his pads red; if it is, you can try several things. Since you want to use natural methods, try one of Callie's remedies; make some black tea and put it on his paws. You can use a spray bottle, squeeze bottle, put it in a bowl and dip his paws in it; whatever works for you.  It should help relieve the itching; you can do it as often as seems necessary. You can try natural antihistamines like quercitin but Benedryl is safe and may be more effective. Giving a fatty acid supplement like DermCaps or wild salmon oil usually helps the itching too. If he's scratching his body, bathing him weekly with a colloidial oatmeal shampoo can help. I don't know if you consider this natural, but since my dog's allergies couldn't be controlled with bathing, supplements, and antihistamines, I took her to a veterinary dermatologist. She was tested to see what allergens her body reacts to. Every two weeks, she gets a shot of a serum containing extracts of the allergens that bother her; it's called allergen immunotherapy.

[] Welcome to the board 

My dog used to itch 80% of the time also (and that was a good day) kidding, I think 80% is accurate.
It turned out that she had a hormonal imabalance, her adrenal glands and thyroid gland were not functioning correctly, so none of the other treatment worked for her (various antihistamines, topicals, on and on with scrapes, tests, etc.).  The hormonal imbalance was having a direct effect on her immune system (her immune globulins) .

Once we corrected the hormonal  imbalance the immune system grew more functional, she stopped itching (also she had other health issues due to deregulated immune system). Diet helped also but unfortunately not enough in her case.
I'd say give diet a try though and whatever else you feel may help, and if all else fails get an Endocrine-Immune blood test. More info: [linkhttp://drplechner.com/protocol.html]http://drplechner.com/protocol.html[/link]

There's been some interesting information on lick granulomas that suggests that long-term (i.e. longer than 12 weeks) antibiotic treatment can clear these up without the use of steroids. This was based on the fact that many of them seem to be caused by rupture of the hair follice under the skin, leading to a festering foreign body reaction (a bit like a splinter).
-Lucy

Thanks for all the help. We have a cone on him, and are giving him the Benedryl twice a day. He's a good sport during the whole thing. I'll report back when he stops itching.[]

Different dogs respond better to different antihistamines. It's pretty variable. You might need to try others. Just for curiosity's sake what locations on his body are most itchy?
-Lucy

Thanks for all the help. We have a cone on him, and are giving him the Benedryl twice a day. He's a good sport during the whole thing. I'll report back when he stops itching.

 
    Have you tried an elimiination diet to see if he has food allergies; you need to feed him a protein and carb that he hasn't had before. My veterinary dermatologist put Jessie on a special diet right away to see if she had food allergies, and she was allergic to chicken. Natural Balance makes some good foods to try. They make a duck and potato, fish and potato, and venison and rice;    [linkhttp://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/dogformulas/home.html]http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/dogformulas/home.html[/link].  Petco carries their foods, and you can order them online. You can also cook the diet if you wish. If he's allergic to some of the ingredients in his food, you should see an improvement within a month, although it may take longer.
 
     Did you try the black tea for his paws; it honestly does help, and it may eliminate the need for the cone. For under his tail, try some aloe vera gel or preparation H cooling gel; I have a dog with allergies and it soothes the irritated skin, especially in the anal region. Honestly, for a dog that itches so much he needs a cone, the Benedryl alone probably won't be enough to relieve the itching. 
 
   Have you tried the fatty acid supplements; they take several weeks to work but if you're patient they should provide some relief. Good luck and I hope the poor boy feels better soon.

A dermatologist will help for sure. They will find the cause, not just give steriods. Steriods are great when the dog is in agony. They are good for a short time, not a long time. Allergies are awful! I hope you get help very soon. I have been through it all. I give shots from a serum made for Trudy. Worked great.Natural Balance Fish was a good food, now I homecook. I know all of the foods that make her itch, so that problem is over also.
 
Hope you can get help soon.

I had a yellow lab that had bad allergies. He was allergic to dust,mold,tree pollen, some weed pollens and corn pollen. We tried everything under the sun. The only thing that worked was steriods. He died from steriod induced Cushings disease. We had to put him down when he developed the Cushings. He was only 6 years old. If you think your dog might have allergies it would hurt to get him tested. He could have a food intolerence or thyroid problems.

ORIGINAL: sophia

[] Welcome to the board 

My dog used to itch 80% of the time also (and that was a good day) kidding, I think 80% is accurate.
It turned out that she had a hormonal imabalance, her adrenal glands and thyroid gland were not functioning correctly, so none of the other treatment worked for her (various antihistamines, topicals, on and on with scrapes, tests, etc.).  The hormonal imbalance was having a direct effect on her immune system (her immune globulins) .

Once we corrected the hormonal  imbalance the immune system grew more functional, she stopped itching (also she had other health issues due to deregulated immune system). Diet helped also but unfortunately not enough in her case.
I'd say give diet a try though and whatever else you feel may help, and if all else fails get an Endocrine-Immune blood test. More info: [linkhttp://drplechner.com/protocol.html]http://drplechner.com/protocol.html[/link]

Thyroid problems are very common in Goldens.

May we ask what food you feed?

He stopped itching.

When dog scratching gets out of hand, it is often the result of allergies to food or environmental triggers, including mold and pollen. Dogs may also develop a skin irritation called contact dermatitis when they encounter substances like pesticides or soap. Boredom or anxiety