Need to clarify on the basement thing. The "basement" is actually the lower level and is fully finished with carpeting, drywall, etc. so it's not like what one would normaly think of as a basement.
There is something with his association in that space though that makes him ALWAYS scratch immediately when he is goes down there. I truly think it's psychological. He used to be confined there until he got older and could handle the steps. So he slept there for a number of months.
It's the only carpeted area in the house, the rest is pine floors with throw rugs. I use Murphy's oil soap on the floors and vinegar & water plus a few other natural products for cleaning. Also use vinegar in the wash.
I think I can eliminate the cedar shavings as a possible cause because he had the itches before I started putting those out for winter.
I'll try the spray on cider vinegar and get back to the flea treatment. We've had a mild winter thus far with spells of warmth (damn lady bugs come out) and lots of rain so there may well be fleas even outdoors.

For 10 days you lived in below freezing temperatures indoors! Yikes. Sounds like Oklahoma ain't no place for wimps!
M

Well you are certainly on the same track and doing all the same things i would be. if you can rule out fleas i would start looking at diet as a possible cause. When nico starts having an allergy attack which can last for weeks and come one with no warning or known cause I give her Tavist, not the tavist D, cut back on what she is eating to one protein source usually free range beef and either sweet potatoes or green beans.
Though i bought some solid gold wolf king made with bison and salmon and she seems to be doing better than she was last week eating raw, less ear scratching and head shaking and less rubbing her belly on the floor and groaning.

Im going to work on getting an affordable source of buffalo meat, being in oklahoma it shouldnt be too hard.
Pork gives her the serious rotten gas, and chicken is a known trigger for her.
did you say the fish oil was helping?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/melodramamaniac/sets/72157603451530414/
not my pictures but taken in tulsa. now it looks like those villages in africa where they build thorny barriers around villages with everyones branches piles at the curb to eventually be picked up.

It was the worst ice storm i have ever seen, and living in oklahoma you get used to extreme weather..it sounded like a war zone and all the beautiful trees this city is known for were damaged and there were 300,000 people without power and tons of damage. Our back yard is still a mess but im not going to try to use the chainsaw and the hubby travels...so it will have to wait.

we didnt stay here during the ice storm, my parents have a gas fireplace and then managed to get a generator after about 4 days so we slept there with the puppy and my son. I did spend a couple of nights at home and under the covers with a dog on either side it was ok....like camping lol

but during the day it was miserable. The big dogs had to stay here as i couldnt take all three and they were happier here than at an overcrowded kennel. Thankfully its less than a mile from house to house so i could check on them frequently and have play time. They behaved quite well and spent the week either sleeping together in a single kennel that i covered in a rug and a blanket. Or laying on the couch looking out the window (joy!)

I am newer to this board, (I read a lot) but I do have experience with the allergy problems with my boxer. His problem was/is twofold. He has very itchy paws at times. I had allergy testing done and found he was allergic to 3 types of dust mites and also had hypothyroid, (he was stinky and loosing hair). Actually storage mites to be more specific. He gets monthly allergy shots, (actually it is a combination of his 3 allergens that was increased over time).
Carpet is terrible for dust allergies and since I am also allergic to dust I replaced the downstairs with wood flooring, which helps. I also have a special air filter for my heating and air conditioning unit, (really it was for me not the dog!). The dog bedding is washed in hot water to destroy the mites each week and the dog is bathed weekly with a perscription shampoo, along with fish oil and vit E. Also the mites are found in dried goods like dried dog foods and either must be freezed to destroy the mites or feeding an alternative diet, like the raw diet. Yours may not be related to dust mites but with your dog getting worse in carpeted areas, it is a possibility.
I know a lot of people think diet as the culprit, which it could be or poor diet could definatly contribute to the problem, but usually it isn't the trigger in the case with itchy paws. I had a vet that kept trying to get me to feed her special science diet crap, insisting it was food related, (it wasn't) and a dog on all kinds of meds he shouldn't of been on. Then I did my own research a few years back...and found a new vet.
Dogs with dust mite allergies seem to need very regular baths to keep them comfortable, (if I go too long between my boxer really starts having issues).
For me it really has taken a combination of things to manages my dog's allergies. If I let up on anything, he really starts to have problems.
Also I have a female boxer mix who has flea-allergy dermititis. She would loose hair on her hind end and legs with any flea exposure. She is much easier to manage...just eliminate fleas. Also I don't give her extra flea medication in the winter, because I don't have problems in the winter and I don't like to give her too much in the way of chemicals. She never has any problems.
Good luck!
BTW even though I havn't posted much I really enjoy this forum, there are some very smart informed people on here, with advice and knowledge on dogs I have not been able to find elsewhere!

Did you have scratch or blood tests done?

By shots, you mean the desensitizing shots? When did you start seeing improvement?

When I was doing desensitizing injections with a dog who tested severely positive to 33 allergens, she had a veritable KIT of liquid injectables from the lab. Red cap, blue cap, white cap (many grasses, 2 mites, and much more)....... I was giving her injections daily of one or another.

QUOTE: I know a lot of people like to jump to conclusion about diet as the culprit, but usually it isn't the case with itchy paws. I had a vet that kept trying to get me to feed her special science diet crap, insisting it was food related, (it wasn't) and a dog on all kinds of meds he shouldn't of been on.. END

Yes. This is a VERY common response, with both owners and vets. Of course, an excellent diet is the backbone of a strong immune system (and allergies are an immune problem), but it drives me crazy that the standard vet response to atopy is the waiting-room "food" and long-term Pred.

Food allergies are comparatively low on the list with dogs.

(OTOH, switching to a fresh raw diet is always my first step with an adopted allergic dog, and it often helps enormously.)

 Quote: Amy Morris

Dogs with dust mite allergies seem to need very regular baths to keep them comfortable, (if I go too long between my boxer really starts having issues).

Does it help with dust mites allergy to rinse, or is the whole lathering deal always needed?

I have found that with grasses and pollens, it helps to baby-wipe the paws and undercarriage before entering the house after a trip onto grass..... at least I can keep from dragging the allergens right into the dog's bed and on the dog's body to breathe in full-time.

It was a wake-up in the Messonier book when he said that any drawbacks to frequent bathing/rinsing are far outweighed by the benefit of getting the allergens off the dog.... not for contact-allergy reasons, but for the whole situation of constantly inhaling stuff on the dog's body.

In most cases i agree Food isnt a typical cause of allergies, but I think that in many cases a poor crappy commercial diet can create all sorts of problems that manifest as poor skin and coat.

When feeding raw its pretty easy to add or take away ingredients and watch for a reaction, so its something I would think about.
Nico also starts to react if she eats the same foods for any amount of time, no matter what it is. A switch of diet often brings almost immediate improvements for a time. She is so far immune compromised though its a crapshoot.

No matter what she is much improved from the days of antibiotics, steroids, prescription food and near death on some days. She has fur now and isnt covered in weepy sores scabby infected spots and hives.

I know your guy hates baths, and freaks out about a blow dryer, do you have a box fan you could put on the floor of a warm room to help him dry faster, also that wet dog smell isnt nearly as prevelant in dogs with healthy skin. So for me its a good indicator of a problem. For a long long time Nico had that sickly sweet smell of something rotten and i got so used to having a smelly dog that when Loki went to visit my parents and my dad leaned over and sniffed him and said "wow he smells good" I had to sniff as well. He has no odor to speak of, and has honestly had 3 baths in his life.

I just wipe him down with a damp cloth and brush him with a curry comb several times a week. And he gets dirty and muddy and all that...but no nasty doggy smell.

Nico is also allergic to dust mites, and she also creates a lot of dust with all of the flaking and scratching...yucky....

I only lather her maybe once every two weeks normally, a quick water rinse followed by a rinse of apple cider vinegar shes done, maybe 5 minutes start to finish at most.

although there have been times she got a full blown bath with medicated sulphur and something "caine" shampoo almost daily to help her feel comfortable and cool the heat of the itching and burning.

 Quote: connie sutherland

Did you have scratch or blood tests done?

By shots, you mean the desensitizing shots? When did you start seeing improvement?

When I was doing desensitizing injections with a dog who tested severely positive to 33 allergens, she had a veritable KIT of liquid injectables from the lab. Red cap, blue cap, white cap (many grasses, 2 mites, and much more)....... I was giving her injections daily of one or another.

QUOTE: I know a lot of people like to jump to conclusion about diet as the culprit, but usually it isn't the case with itchy paws. I had a vet that kept trying to get me to feed her special science diet crap, insisting it was food related, (it wasn't) and a dog on all kinds of meds he shouldn't of been on.. END

Yes. This is a VERY common response, with both owners and vets. Of course, an excellent diet is the backbone of a strong immune system (and allergies are an immune problem), but it drives me crazy that the standard vet response to atopy is the waiting-room "food" and long-term Pred.

Food allergies are comparatively low on the list with dogs.

(OTOH, switching to a fresh raw diet is always my first step with an adopted allergic dog, and it often helps enormously.)

I believe had blood tests done on Rufus for the dust-mite inhalant allergies. He came back allergic to 3 types of dust mites...I should go get the bottle, it took several months before noticing improvement. Yes they are liquid injectables desensitizing shots, (and I'm glad he isn't as bad as that dog you had!) I keep in the fridge.
If memory serves me correct I started with frequent maybe every few days low level doses and gradually stretched out the time between doses over time.
BTW I very much agree with the diet as helping the problem. I hope I didn't come across to discount that. Sorry, I read what I wrote after and changed the post a bit. It's just often people (like my old vet) think that is the only problem. An excellent diet definately supports and without a combination of things my dog has problems. I have decided to switched him to a raw diet (after some research of course) which also seems to clear up the chronic ear infections. I think excellent diet a basis to support the immune system for all critters, (human and dog).
As with washing my allerginic dog, I do suds him up with KetoChlor and leave it on his coat for about 5 minutes and rinse him out. It is supposed to leave a natural polymer film that is protective to the coat and skin I suppose. For him it really does help. He also has a tendency to secondary infections from the chewing. I try to space it out at times but he start to chew his paws after two weeks normally.
Oh and is allergies are storage mites normally only found in the house. So winter is tough with the heating etc.
BTW glad you mentioned predinsone, the old vet had Rufus on it and he did not do well with it.

 Quote: Amy Morris

BTW I very much agree with the diet as helping the problem. I hope I didn't come across to discount that.

Oh, you didn't. I think we agree that it's VERY important in fighting allergies ---- but that the actual allergy is less likely to be a food allergy than a flea hypersensitivity or inhalant/environmental allergy.

 Quote: Amy Morris

If memory serves me correct I started with frequent maybe every few days low level doses and gradually stretched out the time between doses over time.

Yes, ditto.