Intestinal Adenocarcinoma in Dogs: Signs, Treatment, and Outlook

Intestinal adenocarcinoma is a malignant tumor of the glandular cells that line a dog's intestine. It isn't common. Most affected dogs are middle-aged or older, and the main treatment is surgery to cut the tumor out (Matsuyama, 2025). What makes it hard to treat is its habit of burrowing deep into the bowel wall and spreading to nearby lymph nodes, the liver, and the lungs (Matsuyama, 2025).

Location matters more than almost anything else. A tumor in the small intestine usually causes vomiting and weight loss, sometimes a blockage, and by the time it's found it has often spread. Many of these dogs still get good time after surgery, though. In one study of 29 dogs, half were alive about a year and a half after their tumors came out (Smith et al., 2019). Tumors in the colon and rectum show up differently, with straining and blood in the stool, and the outlook is generally better: median survival after surgery runs two to four years (Matsuyama, 2025). Shape counts too. A ring-shaped rectal tumor that narrows the bowel carries a much harder prognosis than a single tumor on a stalk (Church et al., 1987).

Key Points

• Intestinal tumors make up less than 10% of all tumors in dogs, and dogs with gastrointestinal tumors are typically 6 to 9 years old (Matsuyama, 2025).
• Small intestinal adenocarcinoma usually means vomiting, a poor appetite, and weight loss. In the colon and rectum, expect straining, bloody stool, and painful bowel movements instead (Matsuyama, 2025; Church et al., 1987).
• When ultrasound shows the intestine has lost its normal layered look, a tumor becomes far more likely than inflammation (Penninck et al., 2003). You still need a tissue sample to be sure.
• Two studies of dogs who had small intestinal adenocarcinoma removed found median survival of 233 and 544 days (Paoloni et al., 2002; Smith et al., 2019). In the newer one, older dogs did worse.
• Nobody knows yet whether lymph node spread changes the outlook. An older study said yes. A newer one said no (Crawshaw et al., 1998; Smith et al., 2019).
• Chemotherapy is sometimes offered after surgery to go after microscopic spread, but no drug has been shown to help these dogs live longer (Matsuyama, 2025; Smith et al., 2019).
• Supportive care, including nausea control, appetite support, pain relief, and sometimes a feeding tube, matters whether or not a dog has surgery (American Animal Hospital Association [AAHA], 2026).
• West Highland White Terriers turn up more often than expected among dogs with colorectal polyps (Méric et al., 2023). In some Jack Russell Terriers, an inherited gene variant causes stomach and intestinal polyps that can turn cancerous (Yoshizaki et al., 2021).

Detailed Explanation

What this tumor is

A single layer of cells lines the inside of the intestine. Those cells absorb nutrients and make mucus. When they start growing out of control and push down into the bowel wall, you get an adenocarcinoma, which is a cancer ("carcinoma") of glandular ("adeno") tissue.

It doesn't stay on the surface. It grows through the layers of the wall, thickening it and squeezing the passage inside until food can't get through easily. That's how blockages happen. In a study of 21 affected dogs, every tumor went all the way through the wall, and the thickened section measured anywhere from 7 to 17 mm thick (Paoloni et al., 2002).

Spread can happen early. Small intestinal adenocarcinoma commonly reaches nearby lymph nodes, the liver, and the lungs, and it can scatter across the lining of the abdomen, which is called carcinomatosis (Matsuyama, 2025).

A dog's intestine can grow several kinds of cancer, and they don't act alike. Adenocarcinoma is the most common tumor of the large intestine in dogs. In the small intestine, though, lymphoma is more common, with adenocarcinoma next and smooth muscle tumors such as leiomyosarcoma and gastrointestinal stromal tumors after that (Matsuyama, 2025). Treatment differs a lot between them, so you need to know which one you're dealing with. Our overview of stomach and intestinal cancer in dogs covers the others.

One common mix-up: not every adenocarcinoma near a dog's back end is an intestinal tumor. Anal gland cancer starts in the scent glands beside the anus, not in the lining of the rectum. It's a separate disease with its own treatment and outlook. If the report just says "adenocarcinoma," ask where it started.

What causes it, and which dogs get it

For most dogs, we don't know. No infection, chemical, or other specific cause has been pinned down for intestinal cancer in dogs (Matsuyama, 2025). It isn't contagious, so other pets and the people in your house are safe.

Age is the clearest pattern. Intestinal tumors make up less than 10% of all tumors in dogs, affected dogs are typically 6 to 9 years old, and some reports show males affected slightly more often (Matsuyama, 2025).

You'll sometimes hear that long-term bowel inflammation might play a part. The dog evidence is thin. One Japanese study looked at 53 colorectal growths and found that every inflammatory polyp came from a Miniature Dachshund. Some of the more advanced ones had small patches of dysplasia, meaning abnormal cell changes that can come before cancer (Uchida et al., 2016). Interesting, but it's one breed. It doesn't show that ordinary inflammatory bowel disease leads to cancer, and no direct causal link has been established.

For colon and rectal tumors, two breeds stand out.

The first is the West Highland White Terrier. In a study of 58 dogs from France, Spain, and Portugal, Westies were about 20 times more likely than other breeds to have colorectal polyps (Méric et al., 2023). "Polyp" just means a growth sticking out into the bowel. It isn't a diagnosis. When pathologists rechecked the polyps still on hand, many fell into carcinoma categories, and some had already invaded beneath the lining (Méric et al., 2023). So don't assume a rectal polyp is harmless until someone has looked at it under a microscope.

The second is the Jack Russell Terrier. Researchers in Japan found that every Jack Russell in their study with stomach or intestinal polyps carried the same inherited variant in a gene called APC, passed down in a dominant pattern (Yoshizaki et al., 2021). Most of those polyps turn out to be adenomas or adenocarcinomas. About 2% of Jack Russells tested in Japan carried the variant (Yoshizaki et al., 2022). How common it is elsewhere isn't well established. The same group uses a genetic test to detect it (Yoshizaki et al., 2022), so if a young Jack Russell develops bloody stool or polyps, ask about it.

The signs depend on where the tumor is

Early on, the signs are vague. They look like any upset stomach, and they creep up slowly, getting worse as the tumor grows and the bowel narrows.

The most common signs of gastrointestinal cancer in dogs are vomiting, sometimes with blood, along with poor appetite, weight loss, diarrhea, and lethargy. Colon and rectal tumors can also cause constipation or straining. Your vet may feel a mass or a thickened loop of gut during the belly exam, and the belly may be sore (Matsuyama, 2025). Diarrhea sometimes has blood or mucus in it.

Small intestinal tumors cause trouble mainly by narrowing the bowel. In the 21-dog study, ultrasound showed fluid backed up above the tumor in 17 dogs, a sign that things weren't moving through properly (Paoloni et al., 2002). Vomiting that keeps happening, and keeps getting worse, is often what brings these dogs in.

Colon and rectal tumors look different. In a study of 78 dogs with colorectal adenocarcinoma, every single dog had straining, blood in the stool, and difficult or painful bowel movements. Most had shown signs for 12 weeks or less before they were examined (Church et al., 1987). In the polyp study, 84% of dogs had blood in the stool. The vet could see or feel the growth during the exam in 79%. Only about a quarter had diarrhea (Méric et al., 2023), and the researchers made the point that bright blood without diarrhea should make you think polyp.

Bleeding causes its own signs. An ulcerated tumor can ooze for weeks, and bloodwork may show the type of anemia that comes from slow, ongoing blood loss (Matsuyama, 2025). You might notice pale gums or a dog who's weak and tired. Where the bleeding happens changes what you see. Blood from higher up gets digested on the way down, so the stool turns black and tarry rather than streaked with red.

Less often, a tumor tears right through the bowel wall. Belly pain and fluid in the abdomen can mean the intestine has ruptured, or that cancer has spread across the abdominal lining (Matsuyama, 2025). A ruptured intestine is an emergency.

Nothing on this list is specific to cancer. Inflammatory bowel disease, parasites, and swallowed objects can all look the same. That's the reason persistent signs deserve a proper workup, especially if they're getting worse or your dog is losing weight, rather than one more round of treating the symptoms.

How it's diagnosed

Vets usually work from the least invasive tests toward the most definitive.

First comes a physical exam, with careful feeling of the belly and a rectal exam. For colon and rectal tumors, that rectal exam is one of the simplest and most useful tests there is. Many rectal growths sit close to the anus; in the polyp study, the median distance was 3 cm (Méric et al., 2023). Imaging did much worse. Of 34 dogs that had imaging, mostly abdominal ultrasound, the polyp showed up in just one (Méric et al., 2023).

Then bloodwork. A complete blood count looks for anemia, and a chemistry panel checks organ function, protein, and electrolytes. Bloodwork can't diagnose intestinal cancer. It can turn up anemia, low protein, or electrolyte problems from vomiting (Matsuyama, 2025). Normal results don't rule anything out.

Abdominal X-rays can show a blockage or odd gas patterns, but plain films rarely show the tumor itself. Contrast X-rays, taken after a dog swallows something that outlines the gut, can reveal masses or ulcers (Matsuyama, 2025).

For the small intestine, abdominal ultrasound does most of the heavy lifting. It measures how thick the wall is, finds masses, checks the nearby lymph nodes, and looks for spread to the liver and other organs. A healthy intestinal wall has distinct layers that look a bit like tree rings on the screen. In a study of 150 dogs with confirmed intestinal disease, 99% of the dogs with tumors had lost those layers, and loss of layering made a tumor 50.9 times more likely than inflammation (Penninck et al., 2003). In the adenocarcinoma study, every tumor had completely lost its layering, and the median tumor length was about 4 cm. Twelve of the 21 dogs had enlarged nearby lymph nodes or nodules on the tissue around the intestines (Paoloni et al., 2002).

Ultrasound isn't perfect. A normal scan doesn't rule out a tumor (Matsuyama, 2025). Tumors tucked deep in the pelvis can hide from both ultrasound and a rectal exam, and that's where CT and colonoscopy help (Matsuyama, 2025). CT can also help tell different small intestinal tumors apart before surgery, though you'll still need tissue (Matsuyama, 2025).

Only a biopsy can confirm adenocarcinoma. Ultrasound can guide a needle to collect cells for fine needle aspiration or a needle biopsy (Matsuyama, 2025). Endoscopy, which uses a flexible scope passed into the bowel, lets a vet look around and grab small samples. The catch is that those samples only reach the surface. Adenocarcinoma often grows deep in the wall, so an endoscopic biopsy can miss it or make it look less serious than it is (Matsuyama, 2025).

That's why surgery often gives the fullest answer. During exploratory surgery, the surgeon can see the whole intestine, take full-thickness biopsies, sample nearby lymph nodes and the liver, decide whether the tumor can come out, and often remove it on the spot (Matsuyama, 2025). A veterinary pathologist then confirms the cancer type, grades how aggressive the cells look, and reports whether the edges of the removed tissue are clear. Our article on reading your dog's biopsy report explains the terms.

Checking for spread

Small intestinal adenocarcinoma has often spread before anyone finds it. Gastric and small intestinal adenocarcinomas commonly spread to nearby lymph nodes, the liver, and the lungs, and up to 77% of intestinal adenocarcinomas have spread by the time of diagnosis (Matsuyama, 2025).

So staging comes before surgery. Chest imaging with three-view X-rays or CT checks the lungs, and it's especially important when surgery is on the table (Matsuyama, 2025). Keep in mind that a clear chest X-ray can't see microscopic spread. Our article on whether your dog's cancer has spread goes deeper.

Surgery for small intestinal tumors

Surgery is the standard treatment for intestinal adenocarcinoma that hasn't spread widely (Matsuyama, 2025). The surgeon takes out the affected stretch of intestine plus some healthy bowel on either side, then joins the ends back together. Nearby lymph nodes can be sampled or removed during the same operation. The guidance is at least 3 cm of bowel on each side when possible (Matsuyama, 2025). One study backs that up. Researchers examined tumors from 27 dogs a centimeter at a time, and for all 10 carcinomas, a 3 cm margin would have gotten the whole tumor (Morrice et al., 2019).

Surgery can make sense even when a cure is off the table. If a tumor is blocking the intestine, taking it out may relieve the blockage and the pain that goes with it, as long as the risks are reasonable (Matsuyama, 2025).

What to expect after small intestinal surgery

Published survival numbers vary a lot, and the studies are small. Side by side:

Overall, median survival for canine small intestinal adenocarcinoma is usually put at 4 to 18 months, with 40% to 60% of dogs alive at one year (Matsuyama, 2025). A median is just the midpoint. Half of dogs live longer than that, and some live a lot longer.

Intestinal surgery carries its own risks, and your surgeon will go over them with you. Our article on your dog's recovery after cancer surgery covers the general picture.

What shapes the outlook

The prognosis is generally guarded. Still, a handful of things can tip an individual dog's odds one way or the other.

Location matters most. Colorectal tumors generally do better than small intestinal ones (Matsuyama, 2025). Within the rectum, ring-shaped tumors that wrap around and narrow the bowel do far worse than single tumors on a stalk (Church et al., 1987).

Age came up in the most recent small intestinal study as the only factor that predicted survival on its own. Dogs under 8 had a median survival of 1,193 days. For dogs 8 and older, it was 488 days (Smith et al., 2019).

Spread is where the research gets murky. Distant spread, to the liver or lungs for example, is a serious finding, and it's why staging happens before surgery (Matsuyama, 2025). Lymph nodes are a different story. In the older study, dogs whose spread was confirmed under the microscope at surgery had a median survival of 3 months, versus 15 months for dogs without it. But that study lumped adenocarcinomas in with leiomyosarcomas, which survived about the same as each other (Crawshaw et al., 1998). The newer study looked only at adenocarcinoma and found lymph node spread had no link to survival. Its authors concluded these dogs have a fair prognosis after surgery even with lymph nodes involved (Smith et al., 2019). Both studies were small. Neither settles it. The newer data do suggest, though, that lymph node involvement alone isn't a reason to assume surgery won't help.

Getting all of the tumor out matters, since anything left behind can regrow. A 3 cm rim of healthy tissue appears to be enough for most small intestinal carcinomas (Morrice et al., 2019). Ask your surgeon what the pathology report says about the margins, and what it means if they aren't clean. Our article on what clear margins do and don't mean explains the nuances.

General health counts as well. Body condition, nutrition, and other medical problems all affect how a dog handles surgery and recovery, and nutritional status should be assessed at diagnosis and throughout treatment (AAHA, 2026).

One more finding, with a big caveat. The older 21-dog study reported that females lived a median of 28 days after surgery, compared with 272 days for males (Paoloni et al., 2002). Very few dogs were involved, and later work hasn't confirmed it. Don't use it to make decisions about your own dog.

Chemotherapy: the honest answer

The logic behind chemotherapy after surgery is simple enough. This cancer spreads early, so microscopic cells may already be elsewhere even when the scans look clean. Chemo is meant to go after those cells and slow things down. That's why some dogs are offered it.

The evidence hasn't caught up. Effective chemotherapy for gastrointestinal adenocarcinoma in dogs hasn't been established. Carboplatin, doxorubicin, and gemcitabine have all been used after surgery, but whether they help is unknown (Matsuyama, 2025). In the 29-dog study, neither chemotherapy nor anti-inflammatory medication after surgery was linked to longer survival (Smith et al., 2019).

That study was retrospective. It looked back at records rather than randomly assigning treatment, and the authors called for prospective studies to answer the question properly (Smith et al., 2019). "Not proven" doesn't mean "proven not to work." What it does mean is that this decision deserves a real conversation with a veterinary oncologist about your dog, the side effects, and what you're actually hoping chemo will do. Ask about a clinical trial, too.

Colorectal adenocarcinoma: a different outlook

Colon and rectal adenocarcinoma generally does better than the small intestinal kind, with median survival of two to four years after surgery (Matsuyama, 2025).

Shape is one of the clearest clues. The 78-dog study sorted colorectal tumors by appearance: single tumors on a stalk, two or more nodules, or ring-shaped tumors wrapping around and narrowing the bowel. Dogs with ring-shaped tumors had the shortest mean survival, 1.6 months. Dogs with a single stalked, polyp-like tumor had the longest, 32 months (Church et al., 1987). Treatment helped. Dogs whose tumors were removed or frozen off lived significantly longer than dogs who only had a biopsy, though most dogs in that study were eventually euthanized because their signs got so bad (Church et al., 1987). The study dates from the 1970s and 1980s, and surgery has come a long way since. The pattern by shape still holds up as a guide.

There's more than one way to operate, and the options range from fairly gentle to quite invasive.

Submucosal resection removes the tumor through the anus, by turning the rectal wall outward, so the abdomen never has to be opened. In a study of 93 dogs with benign or malignant rectal tumors treated this way, 29% had complications and the tumor came back in 21%. Median survival wasn't reached in any group, which means more than half the dogs were still alive when the study ended (Cantatore et al., 2022).

Rectal pull-through surgery is bigger. It removes a full-thickness section of the rectum. In a study of 74 dogs, 78.4% had complications afterward, most often fecal incontinence. Local tumor control was good, though, and median survival was 696 days for rectal carcinoma and 1,006 days for carcinoma in situ, an early cancer that hasn't invaded deeper tissue (Nucci et al., 2014). A smaller study of 11 dogs reported mean survival of 44.6 months after pull-through surgery. The two dogs who needed a combined abdominal and rectal approach, however, died within four days (Morello et al., 2008).

Take those complication rates seriously. Fecal incontinence changes daily life for a dog and the people living with them, and it belongs in the same conversation as survival numbers. Ask your surgeon which approach suits your dog's tumor and what recovery will probably look like.

Polyps get their own mention. In the 58-dog polyp study, the chance of a polyp coming back within four years of removal was about 21%, and median survival was 1,640 days, roughly four and a half years. Westies and dogs with bigger polyps were more likely to see one return (Méric et al., 2023). The researchers suggested routine rechecks after removal for these dogs. They also recommended that biopsies include the tissue under the lining, so the pathologist can tell whether cancer has invaded (Méric et al., 2023).

Supportive and palliative care

Comfort care isn't only for the end. Dogs recovering from surgery need it. So do dogs on chemo. For dogs with advanced disease, or families who decide against surgery, it becomes the whole focus. Palliative care aims to keep vomiting, diarrhea, pain, and appetite loss under control so a dog feels as good as possible.

Start with food. AAHA's oncology guidelines say the main goal is food that's highly palatable and actually gets eaten. It should be complete and balanced, and if you're cooking at home, a veterinary nutritionist should help (AAHA, 2026). While the gut is upset, your vet might also suggest something easily digestible. Skip raw diets; they aren't recommended for dogs with cancer because of infection risk (AAHA, 2026). Our page on feeding your dog with cancer has practical ideas.

If nausea could be behind the poor appetite, the guidelines say to treat the nausea first. Anti-nausea drugs such as maropitant can help, and appetite stimulants are an option for a dog who still isn't eating enough (AAHA, 2026). Our article on Cerenia for nausea explains how that drug works.

When a dog keeps refusing food despite medication, bring up a feeding tube. AAHA recommends discussing it with families when poor appetite persists, weighing the dog's goals of care, quality of life, and prognosis (AAHA, 2026). It sounds drastic. For some dogs, though, it ends the daily fight over meals and makes medication much easier to give.

Pain control works best with more than one approach at once, and treating the disease itself is usually the most effective pain relief there is (AAHA, 2026). See our guides to pain management for dogs with cancer and comfort medications for the options.

Living with the diagnosis

The first weeks after surgery are about recovery. You'll be watching the incision, keeping pain under control, and making sure your dog eats. If chemo is part of the plan, the team will keep an eye on side effects and adjust. Vomiting, diarrhea, and appetite may need managing for a while.

Over the longer haul, expect regular rechecks. These usually include an exam, a weigh-in and appetite check, rectal exams for colorectal tumors, and repeat imaging such as abdominal ultrasound and chest X-rays or CT to catch regrowth or spread. Ask your team what schedule they'd like and which signs should bring you in early. Our article on whether cancer can come back after treatment explains the difference between recurrence and spread.

Between visits, jot down appetite, weight, vomiting, and how the stool looks. Your vet can do a lot more with notes than with "he seems off." The Dog Cancer Tracker is built for exactly this, and a quality of life scale can help you spot changes over time.

Coping with the diagnosis

This is a hard diagnosis to hear, and the decisions that come after can pile up fast. You don't have to make them alone, or all at once. Ask your veterinary team everything, including the questions that feel awkward, and tell them plainly what matters most to you. A good plan fits both your dog's needs and your family's wishes, with your dog's comfort and your bond at the center. Money is a fair part of that conversation. Our article on the cost of treating cancer in dogs can help you prepare.

Caring for a sick dog wears people down. Our articles on caregiver burden and self-care for dog cancer caregivers are for you, not your dog.

When to Contact a Veterinarian

Head to your vet or an emergency hospital right away if your dog has a painful or swollen belly, keeps vomiting and can't keep water down, vomits blood, has pale gums, is weak or collapses, or strains without producing anything. Any of these can mean a blocked or ruptured intestine, serious bleeding, or a dog who can't pass stool.

Book an appointment within a few days for vomiting that keeps coming back, diarrhea that won't settle, weight loss you can't explain, a poor appetite lasting more than a day or two, black or tarry stool, bright red blood in the stool, or straining to defecate. Signs that are slowly getting worse need attention even if no single day seems dramatic. And blood in the stool without diarrhea is worth a visit even when your dog seems otherwise fine.

If your dog has already had surgery for intestinal adenocarcinoma, call your team as soon as vomiting, straining, blood in the stool, appetite loss, or weight loss comes back. Don't wait for the next scheduled recheck.

Questions to Ask Your Veterinarian

• Where exactly did the tumor start, how big is it, and is it definitely an intestinal adenocarcinoma rather than lymphoma, a stromal tumor, or anal gland cancer?
• Is the tumor narrowing or blocking the intestine, and how deeply has it grown into the wall?
• Has it spread to the lymph nodes, liver, lungs, or anywhere else? What staging do you recommend, and would CT add anything for my dog?
• What treatment options do you recommend, and what are the risks and possible complications of surgery?
• What margins are you planning, and will you sample nearby lymph nodes and the liver?
• For a rectal tumor, which surgical approach fits, and how likely is fecal incontinence afterward?
• Is chemotherapy being recommended after surgery? What would its goals be, what side effects could it cause, and is there evidence it would help my dog?
• What outlook should we expect with the treatment you're recommending?
• How will you manage vomiting, diarrhea, and pain, and will my dog need diet changes or a feeding tube?
• What will the recommended plan and ongoing care cost?
• What can I do at home to keep my dog comfortable?
• What recheck schedule do you recommend after treatment, and which signs should bring us in sooner?
• My dog is a West Highland White Terrier or Jack Russell Terrier. Does that change how we monitor or test?

For more help getting ready, see our questions to ask your vet about dog cancer. You might also think about whether a second opinion or a referral to a veterinary oncologist makes sense for your family.

Sources

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Cantatore, M., Jimeno Sandoval, J. C., Das, S., Sesana, A., Charlesworth, T., Ryan, T., Morello, E. M., Gobbetti, M., Cinti, F., & Rossanese, M. (2022). Submucosal resection via a transanal approach for treatment of epithelial rectal tumors: A multicenter study. Veterinary Surgery, 51(3), 397-408. 

Church, E. M., Mehlhaff, C. J., & Patnaik, A. K. (1987). Colorectal adenocarcinoma in dogs: 78 cases (1973-1984). Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, 191(6), 727-730. 

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Matsuyama, A. (2025, January). Gastrointestinal neoplasia in dogs and cats. MSD Veterinary Manual. https://www.msdvetmanual.com/digestive-system/neoplasia-of-the-gastrointestinal-tract-in-small-animals/gastrointestinal-neoplasia-in-dogs-and-cats

Méric, T., Issard, J., Maufras, T., Hugonnard, M., Senecat, O., Lecoindre, A., Oliveira Leal, R., Bertolani, C., Toulza, O., Lecoindre, P., Brisebard, E., Ledevin, M., Larcher, T., Drut, A., Darnis, E., & Hernandez, J. (2023). Recurrence and survival in dogs with excised colorectal polyps: A retrospective study of 58 cases. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, 37(6), 2375-2384. 

Morello, E., Martano, M., Squassino, C., Iussich, S., Caccamo, R., Sammartano, F., Zabarino, S., Bellino, C., Pisani, G., & Buracco, P. (2008). Transanal pull-through rectal amputation for treatment of colorectal carcinoma in 11 dogs. Veterinary Surgery, 37(5), 420-426. 

Morrice, M., Polton, G., & Beck, S. (2019). Evaluation of the extent of neoplastic infiltration in small intestinal tumours in dogs. Veterinary Medicine and Science. 

Nucci, D. J., Liptak, J. M., Selmic, L. E., Culp, W. T. N., Durant, A. M., Worley, D., Maritato, K. C., Thomson, M., Annoni, M., Singh, A., Matz, B., Benson, J., & Buracco, P. (2014). Complications and outcomes following rectal pull-through surgery in dogs with rectal masses: 74 cases (2000-2013). Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, 245(6), 684-695. 

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Smith, A. A., Frimberger, A. E., & Moore, A. S. (2019). Retrospective study of survival time and prognostic factors for dogs with small intestinal adenocarcinoma treated by tumor excision with or without adjuvant chemotherapy. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, 254(2), 243-250. 

Uchida, E., Chambers, J. K., Nakashima, K. (2016). Pathologic features of colorectal inflammatory polyps in miniature dachshunds. Veterinary Pathology, 53, 833-839. 

Yoshizaki, K., Hirata, A., Matsushita, H., Sakaguchi, M., Yoneji, W., Owaki, K., & Sakai, H. (2022). Molecular epidemiological study of germline APC variant associated with hereditary gastrointestinal polyposis in dogs: Current frequency in Jack Russell Terriers in Japan and breed distribution. BMC Veterinary Research. 

Yoshizaki, K., Hirata, A., Nishii, N., Kawabe, M., Goto, M., Mori, T., & Sakai, H. (2021). Familial adenomatous polyposis in dogs: Hereditary gastrointestinal polyposis in Jack Russell Terriers with germline APC mutations. Carcinogenesis, 42(1), 70-79. 

This article is provided for educational purposes only and does not constitute veterinary medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Survival figures describe groups of dogs in published studies and can't predict how an individual dog will do. Never start, stop, or change any treatment without guidance from your veterinary team. If your dog is vomiting repeatedly, has a painful or swollen belly, or is straining without passing stool, contact your veterinarian or an emergency hospital right away.