diff --git a/src/daemon/admin/index.ts b/src/daemon/admin/index.ts
index db8733b..5adafe8 100644
--- a/src/daemon/admin/index.ts
+++ b/src/daemon/admin/index.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import "websocket-polyfill";
-import NDK, { NDKEvent, NDKKind, NDKPrivateKeySigner, NDKRpcRequest, NDKRpcResponse, NDKUser } from '@nostr-dev-kit/ndk';
+import NDK, { NDKEvent, NDKKind, NDKPrivateKeySigner, NDKRpcRequest, NDKRpcResponse, NDKUser, NostrEvent } from '@nostr-dev-kit/ndk';
 import { NDKNostrRpc } from '@nostr-dev-kit/ndk';
 import createDebug from 'debug';
 import { Key, KeyUser } from '../run';
@@ -168,17 +168,12 @@ class AdminInterface {
                 this.handleRequest(req);
             });
 
-            // Connection watchdog: exit if pool reports no connected relays
-            // for >60s so the process supervisor (systemd / docker restart
-            // policy / k8s) can recover. Replaces the original self-echo
-            // pingOrDie — see relayConnectionWatchdog comment + #4 + #7.
-            // Operators with external liveness checking can disable via
-            // NSEC_BUNKER_DISABLE_WATCHDOG=1.
-            if (process.env.NSEC_BUNKER_DISABLE_WATCHDOG !== '1') {
-                relayConnectionWatchdog(this.ndk);
-            } else {
-                console.log('⏸  watchdog disabled via NSEC_BUNKER_DISABLE_WATCHDOG=1');
-            }
+            // pingOrDie disabled — NDK 2.8.1 outbox model doesn't echo
+            // self-published events back through subscriptions on
+            // non-public relay channels, so the watchdog fires false
+            // positives and exits the bunker every 50s on private relays.
+            // See aiolabs/nsecbunkerd#4 + #7.
+            // pingOrDie(this.ndk);
         }).catch((err) => {
             console.log('❌ admin connection failed');
             console.log(err);
@@ -459,47 +454,44 @@ class AdminInterface {
     }
 }
 
-/**
- * Pool-status connection watchdog. Exits the daemon if every relay in
- * the pool stays disconnected for longer than PARTITION_THRESHOLD_MS.
- *
- * Replaces the original `pingOrDie` self-echo watchdog, which published
- * a kind-24133 event to its own pubkey every 20s and exited if it
- * didn't see the echo within 50s. That works on public relays but
- * silently breaks on single-private-relay setups: NDK 2.8.1's outbox
- * model doesn't reliably route self-publishes back through the
- * matching subscription, so the watchdog fires false positives and
- * exits the daemon every 50s while RPCs over the same channel still
- * work fine. See aiolabs/nsecbunkerd#4 + #7.
- *
- * The pool-status approach uses NDK's own connection-lifecycle
- * tracking — `pool.connectedRelays()` reports relays in
- * NDKRelayStatus.CONNECTED — which is reliable across all relay
- * configurations because it doesn't depend on round-trip
- * publish/subscribe. No event is published; no relay traffic.
- *
- * Detects partition within POLL_INTERVAL + PARTITION_THRESHOLD ms.
- * Transient disconnects shorter than PARTITION_THRESHOLD don't trip
- * the watchdog — useful for relays that flap or briefly drop on
- * network blips.
- */
-async function relayConnectionWatchdog(ndk: NDK) {
-    const POLL_INTERVAL_MS = 10_000;
-    const PARTITION_THRESHOLD_MS = 60_000;
-    let lastConnectedAt = Date.now();
+async function pingOrDie(ndk: NDK) {
+    let deathTimer: NodeJS.Timeout | null = null;
+    
+    function resetDeath() {
+        if (deathTimer) clearTimeout(deathTimer);
+        deathTimer = setTimeout(() => {
+            console.log(`❌ No ping event received in 30 seconds. Exiting.`);
+            process.exit(1);
+        }, 50000);
+    }
+    
+    const self = await ndk.signer!.user();
+    const sub = ndk.subscribe({
+        authors: [self.pubkey],
+        kinds: [NDKKind.NostrConnect],
+        "#p": [self.pubkey]
+    });
+    sub.on("event", (event: NDKEvent) => {
+        console.log(`🔔 Received ping event:`, event.created_at);
+        resetDeath();
+    });
+    sub.start();
+
+    resetDeath();
 
     setInterval(() => {
-        const connectedCount = ndk.pool.connectedRelays().length;
-        if (connectedCount > 0) {
-            lastConnectedAt = Date.now();
-            return;
-        }
-        const elapsed = Date.now() - lastConnectedAt;
-        if (elapsed > PARTITION_THRESHOLD_MS) {
-            console.log(`❌ No connected relays for ${Math.floor(elapsed / 1000)}s. Exiting.`);
+        const event = new NDKEvent(ndk, {
+            kind: NDKKind.NostrConnect,
+            tags: [ ["p", self.pubkey] ],
+            content: "ping"
+        } as NostrEvent);
+        event.publish().then(() => {
+            console.log(`🔔 Sent ping event:`, event.created_at);
+        }).catch((e: any) => {
+            console.log(`❌ Failed to send ping event:`, e.message);
             process.exit(1);
-        }
-    }, POLL_INTERVAL_MS);
+        });
+    }, 20000);
 }
 
 export default AdminInterface;