I am making 3D animals for first time with 50/50 fondant and gumpaste. How do I make sure the arms/legs/ears stay on? How do I keep it from cracking when it dries?

I've heard that you can add a small amount of shortening to it while you are kneading. That should help with the cracks. I just made my first fondant figure, and I used gum paste to "glue" the legs and stuff on. It worked really good! Hope this helps

i was taught to knead in little shortening to the mixture ... to help prevent cracking... knead it good... then is some classes .... we use sphegetti(?) to hold arms , legs, and heads in place.. i use this method all the time.. in animals, people, etc. hth

You can use edible glue: tylose and water or royal icing. I also use toothpicks, but I never thought of spaghetti, I'll have to try that.