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I’m confused, you said it doesn’t require a change to the no pet policy under the law... but according to HUD’s website it does (with very rare exceptions that I know my landlord does not fit under).
There is no need for a landlord to include in a pet policy "This policy does not apply to ESAs or service animals" because neither ESAs nor service animals are pets. Pet polices only apply to pets.

Allowing a tenant to have an ESA or service animal is not an "exception" to a "No Pets" policy, because the animals are not pets.
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I also have emailed my landlord the letter from my doctor and requested accommodations. Am I supposed to wait for a reaponse?
If the ESA letter meets the legal requirements, and your landlord is in possession of that letter and your request that the ESA be allowed to live with you in the apartment consistent with that letter, and your landlord does not have a basis to assert an exemption from the FHA in relation to ESAs, then you have invoked your legal protections under the FHA. It's up to you, whether or not you want to wait for your landlord to respond and to agree that your documentation and request are sufficient, or if you want to bring the ESA into the unit before you have a response from your landlord.
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I could also spin this around as “it’s only 30 days, so why can’t my landlord make an exception for such a short timeframe
Again, an ESA is not a pet. Pet policies thus don't apply to ESAs and there is no need for an "exception' from a no pets rule.