Itchy scratchy ears WITHOUT infection

[Christina and Cooper plus Benny]

I looked around for posts regarding ears, and found lots about ear infections or mites or hair in the ear, but nothing about doodles that scratch their ears for no apparent reason.  I took Cooper to the vet last week because he was scratching and I thought maybe he had an infection.  The vet said Coops ears were perfectly clean, had no hair that needed plucked, and no infection.  He gave me some Mometamax to help with the itching.  Coop seems a little better, but the bottle of Mometamax is tiny, and it was pretty expensive.  I am wondering what other options are out there for calming itchy ears.  I am guessing allergies may be the problem, but Coop is on raw food - pheasant, venison or brushtail that are all supposed to be low allergy.  Plus, I rotate his food, and it doesn't seem to change the itching pattern.  It is spring here, so I don't know if he can be allergic to stuff outside?  Even if it is allergies, I would rather not give Benadryl for itchy ears as it makes him tired and lethargic and I feel like his symptoms are minor and don't need an oral medication.  I would just like to make his ears more comfortable.

So...does anybody know of a good natural treatment for itchy ears?  I already use an alcohol based formula to clean them anytime they are wet or at least once a week.  Maybe the alcohol could be drying them out?

Thanks in advance for your suggestions!
Christina and the itchy boy Coop

[Christina and Cooper plus Benny]

I forgot to mention, the itching is not severe. But today, he did sit down on the trail when we were out running to give them a good scratch, which is what prompted me to write for help. He doesn't wake up in the night itching or anything like that.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Ned has itchy ears and chin that comes and goes. He has periods where he doesn't scratch at all and periods where he scratches a raw place. When he scratches an area he scratches for 20 seconds at a time - not a quick scratch. The groomer thought that the chin problem was due to a stiff hair/whisker that got cut off and needed to regrow, but.... He doesn't have fleas or ear infections or hair in his ears. We give him Evening Primrose Oil and top quality foods that have been different brands and meat sources. We are currently trying Benedryl (1/2 tablet twice a day for his size). I can't tell if he now scratches when it wears off or if it isn't helping. He does have diarrhea from the Benedryl though.