Aside from an accumulation of characteristics in the dental and cranial features, not much of their overall anatomy unites them as a group.
 All species of carnivorans have quadrupedal limbs with usually five digits at the front feet and four digits at the back feet.
In terrestrial carnivorans the feet have soft pads.
The feet can either be digitigrade seen in cats, hyenas and dogs or plantigrade seen in bears, skunks, raccoons, weasels, civets and mongooses.
In pinnipeds the limbs have been modified into flippers.
Unlike other marine mammals, such as cetaceans and sirenians which have fully functional tails to help them swim, pinnipeds use their limbs underwater for locomotion.
In earless seals they use their back flippers; sea lions and fur seals use their front flippers, and the walrus use all of their limbs.
This resulted in pinnipeds having significantly shorter tails.
Aside from the pinnipeds, dogs, bears, hyenas, and cats have distinct and recognizable appearances.
Dogs are usually cursorial mammals and are gracile in appearance, often relying on their teeth to hold to prey; bears are much larger and rely on their physical strength to forage for food.
Cats in comparison to dogs and bears have much longer and stronger frontlimbs armed with retractable claws to hold on to prey.
Hyenas are dog-like feliforms that have sloping backs due to their front legs being longer than their hindlegs.
The raccoon family as well as the red panda are small, bear-like carnivorans with long tails.
The other small carnivoran families Nandiniidae, Prionodontidae, Viverridae, Herpestidae, Eupleridae, Mephitidae and Mustelidae have through convergent evolution maintained the small, ancestral appearance of the miacoids, though there is some variation seen such as the robust and stout physicality of badgers and the wolverine (Gulo gulo).
Male carnivorans usually have bacula, though they are absent in hyenas and binturongs.

Depending on the environment the species is, the length and density of their fur varies.
In warm climate species the fur is often short in length and lighter.
In comparison to cold climate species the fur is either dense or long, often with an oily substance to keep them warm.
The pelage coloration comes in many colors, often including black, white, orange, yellow, red, and many shades of gray and brown.
There can be colored patterns too, such striped, spotted, blotched, banded, or otherwise boldly patterned.
There seems to be a correlation between habitat and color pattern as for example spotted or banded species tend to be found in heavily forested environments.
Some species like the grey wolf is a polymorphic species with different individual variation in colors.
The arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus) and the stoat (Mustela erminea) the fur goes from white and dense in the winter to brown and sparse in the summer.
In pinnipeds, polar bears, and sea otters have a thick insulating layer of blubber to help maintain their body temperature.
Aside from an accumulation of characteristics in the dental and cranial features, not much of their overall anatomy unites them as a group.  All species of carnivorans have quadrupedal limbs with usually five digits at the front feet and four digits at the back feet. In terrestrial carnivorans the feet have soft pads. The feet can either be digitigrade seen in cats, hyenas and dogs or plantigrade seen in bears, skunks, raccoons, weasels, civets and mongooses. In pinnipeds the limbs have been modified into flippers. Unlike other marine mammals, such as cetaceans and sirenians which have fully functional tails to help them swim, pinnipeds use their limbs underwater for locomotion. In earless seals they use their back flippers; sea lions and fur seals use their front flippers, and the walrus use all of their limbs. This resulted in pinnipeds having significantly shorter tails. Aside from the pinnipeds, dogs, bears, hyenas, and cats have distinct and recognizable appearances. Dogs are usually cursorial mammals and are gracile in appearance, often relying on their teeth to hold to prey; bears are much larger and rely on their physical strength to forage for food. Cats in comparison to dogs and bears have much longer and stronger frontlimbs armed with retractable claws to hold on to prey. Hyenas are dog-like feliforms that have sloping backs due to their front legs being longer than their hindlegs. The raccoon family as well as the red panda are small, bear-like carnivorans with long tails. The other small carnivoran families Nandiniidae, Prionodontidae, Viverridae, Herpestidae, Eupleridae, Mephitidae and Mustelidae have through convergent evolution maintained the small, ancestral appearance of the miacoids, though there is some variation seen such as the robust and stout physicality of badgers and the wolverine (Gulo gulo). Male carnivorans usually have bacula, though they are absent in hyenas and binturongs.
Depending on the environment the species is, the length and density of their fur varies. In warm climate species the fur is often short in length and lighter. In comparison to cold climate species the fur is either dense or long, often with an oily substance to keep them warm. The pelage coloration comes in many colors, often including black, white, orange, yellow, red, and many shades of gray and brown. There can be colored patterns too, such striped, spotted, blotched, banded, or otherwise boldly patterned. There seems to be a correlation between habitat and color pattern as for example spotted or banded species tend to be found in heavily forested environments. Some species like the grey wolf is a polymorphic species with different individual variation in colors. The arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus) and the stoat (Mustela erminea) the fur goes from white and dense in the winter to brown and sparse in the summer. In pinnipeds, polar bears, and sea otters have a thick insulating layer of blubber to help maintain their body temperature.
Carnivora