In Spanish, the "personal a" is used before a direct object that refers to a specific person or pet that is being directly affected by the action of the verb. This is used to show that the person or pet is receiving the action of the verb. For example, "Vi a María en el parque" (I saw Maria in the park) uses the personal "a" before "María" because she is the specific person being seen. It is not used before an indirect object or with objects that are not people or pets.
