While taking pumpkins you purchased for the Halloween season, out of town to break open for wildlife seems like a good idea, the Nature Conservancy of Canada says – not so much.

NCC is urging people to NOT discard pumpkins into forests or natural areas

Mhairi McFarlane is NCC’s director of science and stewardship. While it may sound like a green idea, McFarlane says throwing your pumpkin in the woods could unintentionally result in wildlife becoming sick. She says creating a reason for animals to congregate around an unnatural food source can put them at greater risk of transmitting disease. And she says if the site is close to a road, it can increase their risk of being hit by vehicles.

Pumpkins, she says, might be tasty for deer, moose, raccoons and squirrels but they don’t need additional food. She recommends composting or contact local farms, wildlife rehabs and zoos to see if they want to use them.