The owner sent his friends $100 for his dog's adoption lunch while he was out of town – the result went viral

A puppy had an unforgettable celebration of his big adoption anniversary.

On September 21, Sophie Vershbow shared a post on X about how her friend sent a group of them $100 to take her dog Sweeper to a special lunch. The friend was out of town, but she wanted to make sure her pup got a proper meal to mark the 10th anniversary of his adoption.

The post included two photos and a video of Sweeper sitting down at a table with the girls, eyeing a cheeseburger plate with fries and drooling, and the internet couldn't get enough. The post has now garnered over 10 million views and around 500,000 likes.

Speaking to TODAY.com, Vershbow explains the friend's request and explains why Sweeper is “special” to the group as a whole.

Sweeper, likely a spaniel mix, was adopted from Ruff House Rescue in New York when he was 1 year old, making him 11 years old today.

“He was truly the first dog of the group, so he has a very special place in our hearts,” says Vershbow. “And (my girlfriend) realized she was going to be away for his anniversary and asked if we could take him to lunch, a little treat for him.”

The group headed to Fred's on Manhattan's Upper West Side, a dog-friendly eatery — and from the looks of it knows how to make a mean cheeseburger.

“We gave him pieces of our cheeseburgers and then French fries so he had plenty to eat,” Vershbow says. “He also got some bacon from someone else's plate.” She clarified that Sweeper did not eat onions, according to concerns in the comments section.

Fred's is known for hanging framed photos of dogs in it, and Vershbow noted that her own dog, Simon, has a coveted spot on the photo wall. Vershbow travels to the American town every year to visit Simon's adopted child.

Although Sweeper may not be a regular at Fred's, Vershbow says the dog was “really happy” and felt it was a special occasion.

“We always joked that he knew. I mean, we all love him,” she says. “I think he's just happy to go out to lunch with the girls anyway.” But we don't usually give these dogs significant portions of hamburger.”

“We all want them to live a healthy and long life on non-special occasions. “I think he realized it was a special day for him,” Vershbow continued.

As for the rest of Sweeper's big day, Vershbow said the group took him on a long walk in New York City's Riverside Park.

Although Sweeper was the first pet adopted by someone in her close circle of friends, Vershbow says more of them now have dogs of their own that all hang out together.

“Our dogs go to many places with us and eat and drink a lot outdoors. When we’re all together, there’s usually at least one of our dogs there,” she says.

Vershbow also enjoys sharing fun adventures with her friends and their dogs online. Simon also has his own Instagram page with over 20,000 followers.

“I strongly believe in the importance of putting positivity and just sweet things online,” says Vershbow. “Everyone has a hard day.”

“And that's why I tweet a lot of things that I think are cute and positive when it comes to dogs, just because I really think it brightens people's day and that we all need that.”

This article was originally published on TODAY.com