Golden with allergies

Question
A little background with a question at the end...

I have a 2 and 1/2 yr old golden retriever who has had severe allergies since about 4 mos of age.  She is constantly chewing her hind-end, paws, and scratching her face.  She also has frequent ear infections.

We've been through everything our vet knows to do.  We've tried the special diets, oatmeal baths, changing her bedding, and now have her taking 4 fish oils and 8 benadryls every day.  Nothing helps.  

We called a canine dermatologist, but she said the only test left is the one much like humans have where they'll stick her with several allergens to see which one(s) reacts.  After that, she said that we'd have to put her on shots for the rest of her life, and that even that probably wouldn't help.  Besides that, we have a baby on the way and can't afford the treatments that she described.

This dog isn't a dog - she's one of the family.  Watching her suffer is like having the allergies myself.  Is there anything else, no matter how silly, that might help?  We'll try anything we can.  

In case you need to know, we live in Southern Texas, and she has this problem year-round.  It becomes a little more severe in spring when the oaks are in bloom.  I've heard that living in a cooler climate helps.  Is that true?

Answer
Golden Retrievers are very prone to allergies.  It is a genetic thing!  There are many ways of dealing with allergies.  Understand that there is no CURE.

If you know what the dog is allergic to, you may be able to limit exposure.  For example, if your dog is allergic to house dust mites, then making the dog stay outdoors may really help limit the exposure to the mite allergens in the house. Frequent bathing or swimming can actually remove many of the  allergens that get caught in the "dust mop" that is the dog's haircoat.  

Another way is to have allergy shots made based on the results of the allergy tests the dermatologist recommended to immunize your dog against the harmful effects of the allergens. This does take a long time and may not have a 100% effect.

The easiest and cheapest way to deal with allergies is to use cortisone. Benadryl has been proven to be of no use in dog skin allergies.  I use a shot called Dexamethasone and follow up with dexamethasone tablets every other day to every 3rd day to keep the skin from overreacting to the allergens.  Your vet can do this or you cal call around and find a vet that treats allergies with cortisone.  It requires some periodic monitoring and there are some side effects of cortisone, but this therapy keeps many of these dogs happy and their itching manageable.