Did I hit the Mule Deer???

I have not hunted deer since I was a boy 29 years ago. Satbrday I went hunting Mule Deer for the 1st time since then. Three Beautiful bucks came walking straight at me, pausing to look around quite frequently. Finaly they turned broadside and walked past me very slowly pausing every so offten. But I had a T/C encore hand gun with a hand gun scope. Because I had not used it for hunting ( I had shot many times at the range with it but that was not a moving target) I found it very difficult to locate the deer through the scope. Each time I would get a bead on the deer he would move and I would have a hard time getting him in the scope again. Two of the bucks moved into heavy brush out off my view. Finally I shot at the last one before it entered the brush. They all took off bounding through heavy brush. One of them bleated a 'scream' or so it sounded several times as it bounced through the brush down the hill. I was not sure if I hit the deer I was aiming at. I waited for about 10 minutes and then went to where the deer was standing. I looked for a blood trail. I followed its hoof prints through the brush until I lost the trail. All the time I saw no blood. So I assumed I missed it. I never found the deer. The thing that makes me doubtful that I missed was the fact that the deer was 'screaming' as it bounced through the brush almost as if it was hurt. It was not a low grunt but a high pitched bleat. I have been worried that I hit him and he is dying slowly some where. Is this bleating a hurt sound or just a scared bleat or warning bleat for the other deer? I am hoping that I missed it rather than wounded it. Can any one shed some light on this? Did I hit him or miss him?

In the mean time I have removed my scope from the T/C and will shoot with open sights from now on. It was very frustrating to see the deer so close and not be able to sight in on them.

Thanks for the help. Kimball

It's as warning call. Meant to warn everybody in the neighborhood to clear out. A really wierd call is the one as doe uses when she is looking for a fawn she lost in the rush. Bill Van Houten (USA Ret)

Thermopylae had it's messenger of defeat, COME AND GET THEM ! The Alamo had none.

The bleatng is an alarm emitted by both does and bucks.