diff --git a/lib/Cake/Model/Model.php b/lib/Cake/Model/Model.php
index 3cc81c304..c990c87eb 100644
--- a/lib/Cake/Model/Model.php
+++ b/lib/Cake/Model/Model.php
@@ -1408,7 +1408,7 @@ class Model extends Object implements CakeEventListener {
 			list($model, $column) = explode('.', $column);
 		}
 
-		if ($model != $this->alias && isset($this->{$model})) {
+		if (isset($model) && $model != $this->alias && isset($this->{$model})) {
 			return $this->{$model}->getColumnType($column);
 		}