Rob Stolzer, who knew and interviewed Bud Blake, sends along some info. He also informs me that I accidentally gave Mr. Blake's real first name as Justin, not Julian. I went back and changed it to Julian and let's just pretend that it always said that, okay?
Rob confirms that Blake retired from drawing Tiger in March of 2004. The syndicate planned then to hand the strip over to a new creative team but began rerunning old Blake strips to get some lead time…then never stopped. So everything since then is Blake reprints.
Over on this page, Rob has a nice gallery of Blake's handiwork and a tribute written by Blake's son. It includes the revelation that Blake once worked as an assistant to the flamboyant designer, Cecil Beaton. That must have been quite an experience. No wonder he got into cartooning.