Undeterred, they split up and searched in different directions. When they returned to camp, it was 9:30 am, and they still hadn't found them. "Our mood was really low, thinking we had wasted our efforts. I even packed my lens into my bag," he said. "It was very cold. The rangers from the patrol station built a fire, and we dried our clothes and warmed ourselves. Just as we were about to give up, the snub-nosed monkeys appeared by the dozen, very noisy!"

Zhang Jinshuo, curator of the National Zoological Museum of China, wrote in his foreword to My Wildlife Circle of Friends:"Wherever there is unique biodiversity, no matter how harsh the environment or conditions, he (Dong) can scale its peaks; thus, pursuing the truest side of nature, thereby recording rare endangered species and displaying their elusive natural behaviors."

Due to his increasing commitments in documentary direction and production, Dong finds that his opportunities to photograph wildlife have become limited. However, he said that he remains eager to seize any chance to venture into the wild and capture its beauty whenever possible.