Golden with an expensive chewing probablem!

Question
QUESTION: Hi! We have a beautiful 6/7 month old full blood Golden Retriever Male. He is very smart and loving especially with our 3 year old daughter. Our biggest problem is that he chews... EVERYTHING! He chews sticks, weeds, flowers, our A/C system, the chainsaw and extension cord, my daughters bike, the Grill, the list goes on and on!!! We have bought him toys, bones, those treat balls and ropes but it doesn't work!! He is strictly outside and we have a HUGE back yard for him to run free in. I haven't had lots of time to play with him and I know thats probably part of it, but I NEED to know what we can do to curb this VERY Expensive problem. My Husband is extremely  feed up and is wanting me to give him away!!
PLEASE HELP ME!!!

ANSWER: The only real answer is to deny him access to all that.  He really belongs in the house, under supervision or in a crate all the time.  I don't like suggesting this, but I am afraid your home isn't the right one for him or many other dogs.  Please wait until you are ready to give a dog more before getting one.  Maybe not even until your daughter is old enough to take the dog to 4-H.

If you get another Golden puppy, expect much the same thing.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: So I should bring him in the house where there are more expensive things for him to chew?? Im sorry but I dont see how bringing him inside or locking him in a crate is the only answer other than giving him away!! I dont think dogs (expecially large dogs) should be in the house when there is a HUGE backyard for them to enjoy! And I dont understand what you mean wait till my daughter is old enough to take a dog to 4-H? 4H is not 4 dogs!! Its about farm animals!!  Can you not tell me what I should be doing to help break this habit insted of telling me to give up and give him away?!

Answer
Having the dog in the house allows you to give it the attention it needs when you can, and protect it and the house by crating it the rest of the time.  It is a quite workable system.  We have had at least one young Lab in the house most of the time since 1991.  Many of them have been fierce chewers.  Yes some things have been damaged, but overall, very little.  

4-H has a program for every child including dog training.  Much of what I know about dogs, I first learned in the early 90's when my daughter was in our local 4-H canine club.  Even though my daughter is long too old for 4-H, we still let others show our puppies including at the state fair.  

Better dog trainers usually don't claim to be able to train many dogs not to do something when you aren't there.  I know other ones that claim the solution to almost everything is a 3 hour walk every day.  For all I know, that might work, but I don't see it as a workable solution.  I can help you make things work my way.  Neither I, nor I suspect others can help you do what you want to do.  I can give you a link to a picture showing how I stopped my one puppy from chewing up the A/C wiring, http://www.photolocker.net/images/Labman/KatetheAC.jpg

You may find my answer disappointing.  You may also find somebody else's ideas disappointing when you try them and they don't work.  The dog you have is the wrong dog for what you want.  It might be better if you found him a home he fit into better.  You could then adopt an older dog that would be happy in a back yard.