diff --git a/lib/dgram_uv.js b/lib/dgram_uv.js
index 117f871d1db..43564470977 100644
--- a/lib/dgram_uv.js
+++ b/lib/dgram_uv.js
@@ -285,7 +285,11 @@ Socket.prototype._stopReceiving = function() {
   if (!this._receiving)
     return;
 
-  this._handle.onmessage = null;
+  // Black hole messages coming in when reading is stopped. Libuv might do
+  // this, but node applications (e.g. test/simple/test-dgram-pingpong) may
+  // not expect it.
+  this._handle.onmessage = noop;
+
   this._handle.recvStop();
   this._receiving = false;
   this.fd = null; // compatibility hack