The Sanitizer Squad: Pet Waste Removal

Most dog owners view cleaning up after their dog as an annoyance or chore, but U.S. Army veteran Cornelius Tavarres saw it as a business opportunity… What started as a family joke, eventually evolved into The Sanitizer Squad, Pet Waste Removal. While there were many challenges along the way, Cornelius’ motivation and work ethic have earned him many successes in his life and business.

The Sanitizer Squad provides their customers with both residential and commercial services. In addition to cleaning up the poop in the yard, his team goes a step farther to disinfect the area. Their sanitization process is able to eliminate mold and algae and prevent the spread of many harmful pathogens and bacterias. Using a Wysiwash sanitizing system, they are able to eliminate odors and keep the spaces clean. Wysiwash is both EPA approved and pet-friendly, delivering a safe and accurate concentration of a chlorine based-sanitizer.

Outside of backyards, Cornelius can also use it for kennels, dog parks, and more. He also uses CS90X to sanitize spaces from restaurants and offices to cars and porches. Also EPA approved, CS90X is the first, and only, antimicrobial disinfecting coating. Lasting up to 90 days, it kills bacteria, pathogens, and viruses (including coronavirus). No matter how big or small, The Sanitizer Squad has a way to keep every space clean and safe.

Originally from Wisconsin, Cornelius grew up around many people stuck in generational cycles… They were content merely getting by in life, but he was determined to do more. “I knew I wanted to get out of that,” he said, “I had a different mindset than the average person.”

Following high school, he got the chance to attend a college in Michigan. Dr. Jblz saw Cornelius’ potential and somehow was able to get him a year of free tuition… Today, Corenlius still has no idea how Dr. Jblz got him this opportunity. Taking out a loan to pay for transportation, as the college was five hours away, Cornelius began school, but didn’t do very well. He wasn’t aware of the higher expectations, and lacked financial resources… Student loans and scholarships were a mystery to Cornelius, and he ended up leaving after that first year.

However, determined to still somehow advance and pursue a higher education later in life, he enrolled in the military. As part of the process for entering the military, Cornelius took the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB). This test helps determine a person’s strengths and is used to place them in a job that aligns with their skillset. Cornelius did exceptionally well, getting a score that would have allowed him to choose any specialty military occupation (MOS)… However, he was unaware at the time of all the opportunities available to him.

“I was the first one in our family to even think about the military,” explained Cornelius. He had no one to help guide him through everything, and at the time, Motor Transport Operators were being given bonuses, so that is the path he chose.

However, once he was in the army he began to realize his potential. “I could’ve done anything that I wanted to do,” explained Cornelius. “At that point I already had an MOS, I already had a job lined up but they actually took me off that job and I started working in finance, and accounting, and budgeting.”

Cornelius had discovered his love for accounting before he even enrolled in the military. “When I was in high school I took accounting and I just knew it,” he said. “It was so easy to me and a lot of people thought it was challenging.”

After an injury, Cornelius decided it was the right time to leave the military and begin his higher education. He earned his associate’s degree from Jefferson Community College, where he majored in accounting.

Afterwards, he decided to pursue his bachelor’s degree at Empire State College. During the time he was enrolled at Empire State College, Cornelius was also working part-time and had two daughters, Katlyn and Kea. While his wife at the time was in the military, he was often left with the responsibility of watching the kids.

Despite the challenges, his daughters were a huge motivator for Cornelius as he pursued his degree: “I wanted to show them if you work hard and you put your mind to something, set yourself several goals, you can accomplish so much in life,” he said.

Cornelius excelled at school, and earned his bachelor’s degree with a major in business administration and a minor in accounting. After graduating, Cornelius worked at the NYS Comptroller’s office, where he audited bank statements and mileage on state-owned vehicles for all departments throughout New York State. He worked his way up to an examiner where he then began to audit school districts, towns, and villages.

In addition to his accounting skills, Cornelius also discovered a love for coaching basketball. He played as a kid, but never imagined he would ever become a coach: “To be honest with you, I didn’t really want to coach,” Cornelius said, laughing. “My daughters were attending a camp and the directors of the camp asked all the parents if they had played basketball before and they knew the rules, if they would consider coaching. At that point I said I would, and once I did ,that I liked it.”

He has coached for both high school and college teams including: Skidmore College, Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (ACPHS), and SUNY Adirondack, where he is currently the head women’s basketball coach. His coaching philosophy is: academics come first, then family, and then basketball. He wants to provide his players with long-term skills rather than just focus on short-term wins. “When I’m coaching I provide them with life skills. Give them direction so I go above and beyond when I’m coaching at the college level,” explained Cornelius.

For him, there are far more rewarding things than winning a game, and he loves watching his players’ confidence grow. “They’re like, ‘Coach I never knew I could do that’ or, ‘I never knew I could run this long’ or ‘I never knew that I could do this drill’ and just watching that smile come on their face, it brightens my day,” said Cornelius.

He was even inspired to go back to school and obtain his master’s degree in sports management from the American Military University, where he graduated with a 4.0 GPA, in case he ever wanted to coach at a D1 school. “I wanted to have that extra advantage to have that master’s in sports management,” he explained.

Throughout his time coaching he has been recognized several times for his talent. While at ACPHS, he was named Conference Coach of the Year for the 2016-2017 season, and more recently with SUNY Adirondack was named Coach of the Year again for the 2021-2022 season.

Cornelius always had the drive to be a business owner: “I’ve always wanted to become an entrepreneur, I just wanted to find that special niche,” he explained. Cornelius discovered what that niche would be through man’s best friend – a puggle named Ryder.

After adopting the dog, Cornelius, who was in charge of the clean-up, mentioned starting a pet waste removal business to his family. They all laughed at him and it became a joke among his family.

However, in 2020 when the pandemic began, he started to take the idea more seriously. “When Covid hit at that point I’m like you know what, I’m going to take a look back at this, and that’s when I decided to just run with it,” he explained.

At the time, he had a second dog, a pug named Clyde, who he made the mascot for the business. Determined to succeed, Cornelius put in a lot of work to see his business grow. “I don’t like to fail so I do whatever I need to do to try and be as successful as possible,” he said.

He rolled up his sleeves, went out and just started. “I started from the bottom. I went out there with my red bucket, with my rake, and then I started the business by myself,” he explained. While Cornelius did most of the work on his own during the first year, his family and friends were a tremendous help during his venture into the sanitization field. He was surrounded by support from those he loved, and it helped motivate him to continue pushing forward.

While the hardest challenge initially was finding customers, Cornelius’ work ethic, excellent customer service, and perseverance have allowed his business to expand and grow beyond what even he thought was possible. “At this point now I’m looking at it and it’s a business. It’s a business that has the potential to keep growing,” he said.

In the future, Cornelius is planning on separating the two services and creating two businesses: Pet Waste Removal, and The Sanitizer Squad. He also hopes to franchise the pet waste removal business as it continues to grow.

When not coaching or working on his business, Cornelius has a full-time job at the Department of Defense, working as a senior auditor. Despite all of his different responsibilities, Cornelius is excellent at time management, and excels at all that he does. “You have to be very disciplined and you have to have a schedule,” he said.

He passed down his strong work ethic to his two daughters who have each achieved their own successes: “My oldest daughter got a master’s. She’s teaching in Dubai… And my youngest daughter just finished her doctorate, so she’s a doctor now. So she passed me,” said Cornelius.

On the rare occasion that he does have some time to himself, Cornelius is a huge people-person and loves having people over. He also enjoys being outside kayaking, hiking, or swimming. He loves traveling and has visited places like the Dominican Republic and the Caribbean Islands. Unfortunately both Ryder and Clyde have passed, but Cornelius still has a french bulldog, Zola.

For more information, about The Sanitizer Squad visit their website at www.sanitizer-squad.com.