I saw it happen more than once. Group of whitetail does, I shoot the biggest one and it goes down and the rest just stays there, confused and not knowing what to do. I never go on shooting another one - one at a time is plenty for me - once it hits the ground it is not a game, but work

I've seen it happen several times. I've noticed that the ones that really hang around are the current year fawns. That is why I try to shoot dry does.

happens with cow elk also,
years ago in wyoming a hunter shot
the lead cow and she slid down a steep snow covered hillside and off a cliff.
the rest of the herd of 40+ animals
followed her.

How can you tell dry doe from a distance? I know our sheep fed her lamb for a long long time - just because there was a demand, the ewe had milk.

BTW the elk story is sad.

No way to tell a dry doe! Her young might be elsewhere or got killed. You can't pick the mother out of a herd or a dry doe. I never killed a good doe that didn't have milk even long after the fawns were weaned.
Deer do not understand gunfire nor fear it. They only react to what other deer do. If you drop one out of the center of a herd, the rest might bed right there. If the shot one runs, others might run with it or follow it while others scatter from her run because they respond to her reactions. If she stands there after the shot, the rest will stay there too.
Unless of course, if they detect you.

The elk story is not a sad one. They are a herd animal with a leader that is the smartest and usually the oldest. When that cow goes down the rest just don't fully know how to react at times. It is not sad, it is a fact of life. A couple of hunters intent on filling freezers can take a lead cow and knock off another easly at times. I have done is MANY times my self.
Sometimes people try to think the animals have a Disney like thinking. They don't have feelings of love like people, just survival instincts. Ron

OK, sad is not correct world. I understand the way animal world works, but I still don't like things and animals go to waste.

Big doe in a bunch of big does generally equals dry doe. Plain and simple!

Around here fawns are a lot smaller until they are almost 1. Pretty easy small deer with a doe are usually her fawns.

Speaking for myself, if I'm shooting does I generally try to shoot one of the younger ones instead of the lead doe. They will be a bit smaller but always made better table fare.

If there's a lead doe and a small one I guess you could just shoot 'um both...afterall, none of us got any guarantees about the rest of the season..

I thought about it, but decided not to. The season goes till the end of March, plenty of time to fill the freezer.