itching/jack russell

Question
Hello,i have a 3 year old jack russell female,her name is Stella,she is absolutley itching,biting at paws to death.She is a smooth hair,and was the runt,she is an absolute dollbaby,but verfy fierce.Ihave had the allergy test done from the vet about a month ago,also she was taking a steriod pill once a day and has been on these for almost 2 years...she has to have drops twice a day under tonge...her itching in the last almost week has turned into pain and a constant thumping i hear from her,i tell her to stop and it shames her,she cannot help this,but i have to do something for her.The doctor will not renew her steroids,so i called another vet,and they said benedryl,which i have been giving her one a day for a week,"not touching the problem";the vet today said up to three a day she is 12 pounds,o.k. am doing that and she is still itching herself raw...i cannot stand this for her,i have been putting "palmers vitamin e oil on her belly and under her chin,i have vremoved her coller because of iritation,she suggested maybe a dermitologist for dogs,which the closest one is an hour drive,and probably pricey...Ineed the skin doc tor also...i am not trying to be selfish i just need advise or help...I HAVE changed her iams small breed food to the very expensive,newer forms "grain free naturals",i usually give her and "daisy",the older jack female a little ceaser in half once a day,but my better half said stella is to fat,he thinks her skin is stretching like womens do;he sAYS WHEN SHE LOOSES WEIGHT,that she will look like old women with sagging breasts if youy will....Stella has never been bread ,also i do not type but with one finger,and my spelling is not the greatest,excuse me....Please help is there this fish oil pill,and what about this evenin g primrose,or rosemary,i read about one owner giving dog "COMRORTIS"a flea medicine,i used to frontline,and cannot rtemember right this minute,a drop thing on her back,she does not have ticks or fleas,anyway,allercept are the prescription drops.My girl is allergic to ragweed,timothy grass,white ash,russion thistle,malassezia pachydermatis,mite lepiodogosomething mite,.johnson grass,another mite,dermatophagoides,bermuda grass,american beech,eastern sycamore,acarus siro mite....unreal is it not?I AM not a dirty housekeeper,just live right on ohio river and this weather is horrible here,heat index of 103 and 93 today but cannot walk outside without dripping sweat because of humidity...PLEase help ,and i hope this e mail goes through,or i will probably shreak...thank you so much if this is real and someone does help on the other end of these keys..

Answer
oh Holly!!! This is such a sad case and I'm so sorry that both of you have to go through it!
It sounds like you have done everything humanly possible to help Stella! My first thought was to change the food (glad you did, Iams is terrible), but usually skin allergies are due to environmental causes.
By the testing you had done (good job!) it's obvious that grasses and mites are her main problem.

Don't worry about what your husband says about her body, that is so beside the point and lots of dogs are bloated from the steroids and constant changes.  The vet took her off the steroids because the side effects are awful and if they are not helping, it's not worth staying on them.  The humidity here in Massachusetts has also been brutal.

I found an article that maybe you haven't read yet and it's from PetMD - the same medical company as WEBMD except for pets.  I hope this article will give you some insight and some helpful information.  
I suspect that mites or fleas may be a bigger problem than you think. They live EVERYWHERE.
I'm SURE you are not a dirty housekeeper but those pesky teeny creatures are hard to kill. To completely be rid of them, some people have had to repeatedly "bomb" their houses (a fog mist that you set off in your home).  The problem frequently comes back because the dogs will go out and bring them back in. It's a continual battle, one that you have to stay on top of constantly. This article has some very good information and tips and links that will be helpful to you.  My heart aches for you as I have seen first hand what you're going through. I hope that there is an end in sight for you and Stella.  Some dogs are just MORE sensitive than others.   I wish you all the best!!!!!

http://www.petmd.com/dog/general-health/evr_dg_itch_and_scratch_bite_and_lick