diff --git a/datadog/dogstatsd/base.py b/datadog/dogstatsd/base.py
index 31f0c25f9..de77cd94c 100644
--- a/datadog/dogstatsd/base.py
+++ b/datadog/dogstatsd/base.py
@@ -146,7 +146,10 @@ def close_buffer(self):
         Flush the buffer and switch back to single metric packets.
         """
         self._send = self._send_to_server
-        self._flush_buffer()
+
+        if self.buffer:
+            # Only send packets if there are packets to send
+            self._flush_buffer()
 
     def gauge(self, metric, value, tags=None, sample_rate=1):
         """