This does sound like allergies. Things to think about are: did they start this spring/summer? did they start after a food change?
It's important to try to give some relief to the symptoms bc frequent licking/chewing of paws can lead to very sore paw, and even infection. For relief, the options are OTC anti-hists, Temaril-P, steroid shots (for potential immediate relief), and Atopica.
The tough part is figuring out whether it's food or enviro, however, food allergies happen only about 10-15% of the time - so, it's most likely enviro. No matter what the allergy, it's good to have an allergy-dog on a good, grain-free diet, if possible. You want to avoid food allergens, even if he only has enviro allergies right now. Bc once the immune system is hyperactive (ie, enviro allergies), it becomes much more vulnerable to becoming sensitive to other substances.
Here is a great site, and I think it outlines how to approach allergies just wonderfully:
Pet Care Library: Allergies in Dogs