Thank you for the responses and support.
When Rocky was neutered on May 10th, 2015 we also had his four retained deciduous teeth (Baby Teeth) removed that hadn't fallen out yet. The face scratching started prior to being neutered, but was significantly less violent and less frequent. I actually had a feeling that his teeth were causing the scratching back then, but the vet said it shouldn't. Following the procedure, after about a week his breath became unbearably bad and I had to return to have some stitches removed that hadn't dissolved properly and had his mouth cleaned.
To answer your question regarding a skin scraping, yes, we did have a scraping done. However it wasn't left to culture and it wasn't from the area around his muzzle, it was from some small bumps (pimples) on his head and back which were noticed on one of the visits to the vet for the scratching issue. The sample was on a slide and under the microscope in less than ten minutes and found to not be a yeast. We were issued a prescription of Clavaseptin 50/62.5mg (Amoxicillin) which was administered by half pill dosage every 12 hours. Cleared up the bumps nicely but didn't have any effect on anything else. Some hairs were pulled from his muzzle and put on a slide to check for mites on two separate vet visits, but neither of those came up with any indication of mites.
If left without his cone and unsupervised he will do some paw licking, but the licking is constant and not necessarily directed at just his paws. If he is being held he will constantly lick the nearest hand, if he is wearing the cone he will lick the cone or lap at the air.
I rescheduled another vet visit for tomorrow and am going to inquire on the possibility of a tooth or mouth related issue causing the pawing of his face, constant lapping and licking, and breath issues. I also scheduled another vet visit with a doctor that specializes in skin related issues (not a vet derm, but the next best thing). I will also mention Apoquel to the vet tomorrow and see if that would be an option. I will be seeing about pushing for an xray and dental exam as number one priority.
This morning was probably one of the worst mornings for the little guy, as he was in visible pain and actually crying in attempts to reach his face.
