HELP! 8 months puppy still potty untrained

Hi everyone, I’d really appreciate some guidance because I feel a bit stuck.

I have a poodle who’s almost 8 months old, and while we’ve made some progress with potty training, we’re still having consistent issues—especially in the evening.

Here’s her current routine:

• Wakes up around 7 AM and immediately uses the pad in the kitchen to pee
• Eats breakfast, then shortly after poops on the pad
• Goes outside around 12 PM and usually pees right away
• In the afternoon she can hold it until around 5 PM without issues

The problem is everything after that.

Evenings are very inconsistent:

• Sometimes she pees around 6 PM, but not on the pad—just wherever she happens to be
• Other times she holds it until 7 PM, but again doesn’t use the pad
• Yesterday she went out at 5 PM, then again at 6 PM (only a small pee), and then at 8:30 PM she peed directly on her bed

So it feels like she can hold it, but something breaks down later in the day.

Another important detail: she’s quite sensitive outside. She can go calmly for a few minutes, but then she often gets scared by the environment (people passing by, other dogs, noises) and wants to go back home. I’m wondering if this might be affecting her ability to fully relieve herself when we’re outside.

We’re also unsure about the best approach:

• I’d like to take her out more frequently in the afternoon/evening (every couple of hours) to prevent accidents and reinforce going outside
• My wife thinks that doing this might prevent her from learning to hold it properly

Another thing I’ve noticed: after she has an accident, she immediately goes to hide, even though we don’t punish her. That makes me think she’s expecting a negative reaction, which worries me.

At this point I’m not sure if the issue is:

• confusion between pad vs outside
• lack of a consistent evening routine
• her anxiety outside
• or something else entirely

Has anyone dealt with something similar at this age?
Would you recommend increasing potty breaks in the evening, or focusing on helping her hold it longer?

Any advice would be really appreciated 🙏