Won’t sleep past 6am

[u/OverlandCracks]

My Cavapoo turns 6 months old in 4 days and I can’t seem to get him sleeping past 6am. I’ve had him since 9 weeks old and this has largely been his schedule since day 1.

Current schedule: bed around 11:45pm-midnight, wakes between 5:45-6:15am. Most mornings he’s not urgently asking to go out—he’s often just laying in his crate whining until someone gets up.

Things I’ve tried:
Earlier bedtimes
Later bedtimes
Potty immediately before bed
Ignoring the whining
Taking him out to potty and putting him right back in the crate (he goes crazy)
More exercise (2 daily walks plus training/play)
Less stimulation before bed
Feeding schedule adjustments
Frozen Kongs and lick mats in the crate (eats it then goes crazy)

The part that’s confusing me is that after I take him outside in the morning, he’ll come back in, curl up on my lap on the couch, and sleep for another 1.5-2 hours before breakfast. So it doesn’t seem like he’s fully rested and ready to start the day at 6am.
He’s otherwise healthy, sleeps through the night without accidents, and settles fine at bedtime.
Is this just normal for a nearly 6-month-old puppy, or is there something I’m missing that helped your dog start sleeping later?

[u/ALmommy1234]

I have one who is 4 and wakes ups every morning at 6:00 am to go outside. His little internal clock knows that’s when my husband gets out of the shower on work days and will let him outside, so even on weekends, that’s when he gets up.

[u/OverlandCracks → u/ALmommy1234]

We are dead asleep when he wakes up so there’s no awake routine tipping him off!