Ear Mites? Yeast Infection? Allergies?

Hello all, I have a young mastiff that has dark red almost black discharge coming from her ear more so in one ear but its present in both, and it is extremely itchy. I have never had a dog that has had as much itch in there ear/ears as her. But she also is chewing her feet up. I thought it was ear mites by the color of the discharge but then the feet? I'm not sure? she is not itching any where else. Just some history she is fed a raw diet balanced ( please dont try to convince me to stop) the reason I say this is because allot of allergies I have seen in dogs are on dog food so I don't think its her food unless she is allergic to chicken, I cleaned my carpet with water only just in case it was environmental. Maybe she is allergic to mites,
Thanks for any and all opinions :)

[Aleda M Cheng, D.V.M., C.V.A]

It sounds like the primary disease may be Atopy, which is allergic skin disease (ears are lined with skin), or food allergy dermatitis.  The primary atopic disease, or food allergy dermatitis can cause the patient to be susceptible to many secondary factors, such as demodex, scabies, and ear mites, bacterial and yeast pyoderma, and more.  A good percentage of allergic patients are allergic to both environmental factors and foods.  A patient can be allergic to ANY ingredient in their present diet,  or to any ingredient that they have ever been exposed to (even RAW foods).

I have nothing against raw diets, however, I do not believe that one diet fits all!  And yes, chicken can be an allergen.

It would be best to have your dog evaluated for allergies by your veterinarian or by a veterinary dermatologist. There are many tests that could be performed, such as: allergy testing of the skin or blood, food allergy trial (this can be performed with raw foods), skin scraping to test for mites, cytology and/or culture and sensitivity of discharge from the ears, culture and sensitivity of skin, fungal cultures of ear discharge, skin and hair, and many more.

Medications to help control allergies can include: Steroids, Atopica, anti-histamines, desensitization allergy infections,  and more.  The secondary infections should also be treated with antibiotics, anti-fungals, anti-parasitics, medicated shampoos, and more,  depending on the secondary factors.  If food allergies are identified they should be eliminated from the diet.