Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common malignant tumor in the world, given that it ranks third for incidence, after lung cancer and breast cancer. It’s also the second leading cause of cancer-related death. The causes of CRC are complex, treatment options are dependent on the stage of the disease. The purpose of this review is to critically assess the perspectives of pathogenesis and characteristics of clinical indicators from traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine. Moreover, the updated method and mechanisms of modeling of the existing animal models of CRC are provided. The results are showing that current CRC animal models are almost entirely based on modern medical modeling techniques and the evaluation criteria are also mainly based on Western medicine diagnostic indicators. These models are limited because they are lacking of combining traditional Chinese and Western medicine for disease diagnosis and treatment, making it difficult to elucidate the mechanisms for CRC developing. Besides, reliable large animal models are rarely reported. Therefore, a better understanding of the mechanisms of integrated traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine for CRC may provide needed insight to improve the predictability of animal models.