It would have made more sense considering the look he gives Bambi when they first meet.
Funny thing is, on SNL a few years ago, they parodied Disney releasing a Bambi 2 sequel (David Spade was the voice of Thumper, Jared Fogle made a special appearance, and Bambi beat up some terrorists) and I remember thinking "Nah, there's no way in hell Disney would ever release a Bambi sequel".