diff --git a/contrib/libvhost-user/libvhost-user.c b/contrib/libvhost-user/libvhost-user.c
index 09bdff18f3..bfec8a881a 100644
--- a/contrib/libvhost-user/libvhost-user.c
+++ b/contrib/libvhost-user/libvhost-user.c
@@ -1918,6 +1918,7 @@ vu_deinit(VuDev *dev)
         }
 
         if (vq->kick_fd != -1) {
+            dev->remove_watch(dev, vq->kick_fd);
             close(vq->kick_fd);
             vq->kick_fd = -1;
         }