The Scottish Government will consult early next year on whether certain working dogs should be exempted from a ban on tail docking.

The practice was outlawed in 2007 but gamekeepers have called for the ban to be reversed for dogs such as spaniels and hunt point retrievers.

Research carried out by the University of Glasgow last year suggested docking the tails of working dogs by a third while they are puppies could significantly decrease their risk of injury.

The survey of more than 1,000 owners of working dogs found more than half of undocked spaniels had experienced a tail injury of some sort in the last year.

Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead confirmed the Government will seek views on a "tightly-defined" exemption to the ban.

He said: "The issue of tail docking is one that divides opinion because nobody wants to see a dog suffer avoidable harm at any point in its life.

"Despite the ban on tail docking being in place since 2007, some stakeholders have continued to make the case to me that it is possible to bring forward a tightly-defined exemption to the ban that would permit certain breeds of working dogs to be docked.

"I think it is, therefore, right that the Government hears the views of all those with an interest on how any proposed exemptions for specific breeds - likely to be spaniels and hunt point retrievers - could work in practice."