diff --git a/docker/client.py b/docker/client.py
index 79726aafab..57c17cf875 100644
--- a/docker/client.py
+++ b/docker/client.py
@@ -322,7 +322,7 @@ def build(self, path=None, tag=None, quiet=False, fileobj=None,
             exclude = None
             if os.path.exists(dockerignore):
                 with open(dockerignore, 'r') as f:
-                    exclude = list(filter(bool, f.read().split('\n')))
+                    exclude = list(filter(bool, f.read().splitlines()))
                     # These are handled by the docker daemon and should not be
                     # excluded on the client
                     if 'Dockerfile' in exclude: