Heartbroken. My beloved companion, sweet dog Bernie is in trouble

I just got home from being at the vet for 7 hours.

I love my Bernie so much. I rescued him 8 years ago and he's been my buddy, my devoted, loving companion....at times it's been just us, me and my dog. He's helped me through some really rough times. I've never been so attached to an animal.

Today we went to the dog park, he hadn't been for months and I knew he needed to run around and play. He had a great time until he was attacked by a larger dog. He seemed ok at first, there was no broken skin and he was running around normally. We only stayed a couple minutes after that happened. When we got in the car (I was with my friend as well) I noticed he was panting and shifting around uncomfortably. I though he was probably just scared and thirsty so i gave him some water and comforted him a bit. He also seemed really tired, but I thought that was normal after running around the dog park. We stopped and got some food, Bernie in the car with water, in the shade and windows rolled down. I was starting to feel uneasy, like there was something wrong with him. We had planned to drop him off at home and go grocery shopping. When we got to my place and he jumped out of the car he fell, his legs gave out. I freaked out of course, brought him inside and got him to walk around a bit. He kept falling forward. First his left front leg was giving out, then both front legs, then all of his legs and he couldn't walk at all. I felt him all over checking for pain and he didn't cry, didn't feel any pain. I'd been squeezing his squeeky toy to get him to walk and he was trying, he wanted to play, but he just fell over. Oh gawd it was so heartbreaking.I found an emergency vet, called and took him in.

I learned that Bernie has a heart murmer that must be fairly new because no other vet has noticed it. The Vet also believes that Bernies problems could be from a spinal injury. So, he's in trouble and I'm completely devastated, can't stop crying. I had to leave him there tonight for observation and some procedures. They are giving him shots to reduce any possible swelling around his spinal cord which may be causing the problem. He hasn't had any major neurological tests yet, they will run up to a few thousand if he needs them. I feel so awful, so worried for him, he's so scared and I hated leaving him over night. I don't know what I'll do without him if he doesn't get through this.

I have no money so had to call my mom who has no money to ask her to help me with her credit card. Thankfully she understands what it's like to love a pet and she's putting it on her card. I'm not sure that she could cover the huge costs of neurological tests though. I'm just so heartbroken and hoping for the best, that he will be improving by the morning.