Ballard Street by Jerry Van Amerongen for March 23, 2019

But it seems he’s done an admirable job of putting these small bits of knowledge together. By the hat off to the side, it looks like this isn’t his first victim, either.

Mr Crumley never should have kicked him back in 2011.

Scooter has done his research and experimentation, now he has it down! But I see the hat and phone of a previous victim, he probably should have hidden those…

Someone’s about to get hosed.

SHERIFF.

Am I the only one who thinks a leash is in order?

Dog help me, I love Scooter! He’s a dog after my own heart.

It’ll all come out in the wash.

No, Scooter’s been working on this for a while.

Fitting the hoses together was probably his most recent technological victory….

Last year, he mastered the faucet, but he was stuck with a hose of limited length….

https://assets.amuniversal.com/6aa1d200e668013512af005056a9545d.gif

Then it was Buster Kitty who taught him a somewhat embarrassing lesson about looping a line over a tree branch, to trap the unwary.

https://assets.amuniversal.com/b65929c08f77013030b3001dd8b71c47.gif

Not that he was actually hurt…. he could have easily escaped, but he was humoring Buster.

And it gave him the idea that if it were a hose hanging down from the branch….

The attack would be swift, and resistance would be futile.

Scoooter’s not a bad dog… just a smart and wily one, with lots of time on his hands and a bit of …. shall we say, wiggle room(?) … in his moral compass.

If he were a bit more anthropomorphic, he could get a job, like Fenton, and BatPug….

but he’s all dog… and we all love him for it.

Still… sigh…. this can’t really continue.

Monkey! Time for another talk with Scooter!

part of the hose isn’t painted green

Bad doggie! Eh eh eh

Animal cruelty of one sort.

Scooter is such a playful puppy. :)

Briefcase dude seems wary.

He was definitely helped by those YouTube videos (but he still prefers getting on Yelp and reviewing the Ballard Street garbage can fare)…

Anything worth knowing doesn’t just happen overnight,

Hat alert.

Bad dog!

Well, he’s too fat to chase people so he is adapting.

I will surely miss the dog hi-jinks; when Jerry retires I hope they rerun his strips starting at the old The Neighborhood.

Scooter has been colluding with his archenemy.. the squirrels, to get that hose in position.

I had a dog figure out how to turn on a water faucet while outside because he wanted to have freshest water. The possibility is not impossible.

Scooter worked his way up in the hosiery department, taking down wanna bees along the way.

Now, where’s that # * ! Cat???

I love Scooter and Rusty!!!